The head of Pakistan's Ulema Council has condemned the lynching of a Christian couple and said justice must be swift.
Ulema Council chairman Tahir Ashrafi said in Lahore on November 6 that the killing by a mob of a couple in Punjab province for allegedly desecrating a Koran has damaged the image "of both Islam and Pakistan."
He said Islam doesn't allow people to act as judges and executioners.
Ashrafi said those responsible for the "cruel" and "sad incident" should be tried in an antiterrorist court, and urged Pakistan's chief justice to ensure the case is resolved within a month.
Police have arrested more than 40 suspects in the November 4 killings.
The Ulema Council -- a group of respected Islamic clerics and legal scholars from different Islamic sects -- demanded that the government and Supreme Court ensure Pakistan's blasphemy law is not abused by people.