Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazalur Rehman said Tuesday said no one can make changes to the blasphemy laws in the country.

Addressing a press conference in Lakki Marwat, he said that a false charge of blasphemy was leveled in Mardan lynching case to exploit differences.

Fazl said the incident was regrettable and the suspects involved in the case should be given strict punishment after an impartial investigation.

Hundreds of men attacked journalism student Mashal Khan last Thursday, stripping, beating and shooting him before throwing him from the second floor of his hostel at the Abdul Wali Khan University in Mardan.

Khan had been known for his liberal views, especially on Facebook, sparking blasphemy allegations against him.

Twenty-two people have been arrested so far over the killing, which came as the government ramped up its anti-blasphemy rhetoric in recent weeks.