The brutal public murder of two boys in Sialkot has shocked and angered an already hurting nation. Violence like this in the name of justice, however, is not new to Pakistan. Denizens of the North-West have lived through public beheadings and floggings at the hands of Taliban. Minority communities have been brutalised and traumatised by angry mobs accusing them of blasphemy. Police stage encounters to rid the streets of “unwanted elements” regularly across the country.

The Sialkot murders, however, seem to have ashamed and outraged civil society more than many other incidents in recent years. Many people are being blamed. While debating this, citizens and commentators are looking at the situation and wondering how could this have happened? What is wrong with Pakistani society? Why do people resort to mob violence so easily? Why do people stand by and watch injustice unfold in front of them? Is the lack of law and order the fault of the police force or the politicians and government machinery that controls it? Who and what is to blame for the uncivilised attitudes and corrupt systems that have become the hallmark of our nation?

What do you think? Who or what is most to blame in this tragic and shameful incident? Participate in the poll below: