Lahore: A Pakistani court has convicted a Christian man of posting ‘blasphemous posts’ on social media. The court has sentenced the man to death. Officials gave information about this on Monday. In Punjab province last year, a furious mob attacked and set fire to several churches and houses of minority communities in protest against the alleged post of the accused.
What happened in 2023
In August 2023, after reports of alleged desecration of the Quran by two Christians, a mob set fire to at least 24 churches and 80 houses of the Christian community in Jaranwala tehsil of Faisalabad district, about 130 km from Lahore, the capital of Punjab province. After the incident, the police had detained about 200 Muslims, but so far none of them has been convicted, rather 188 of them have been either acquitted by the court due to lack of evidence or released on bail.
Posted on social media
Special Judge for Anti-Terrorism Cases (Sahiwal) Zainullah Khan on Saturday sentenced Ahsan Raja Masih to death and imposed a fine of 10 lakh Pakistani rupees. He has also sentenced a total of 22 years imprisonment under various sections of the Anti-Terrorism Act and the Electronic Crimes Prohibition Act. Masih had allegedly posted ‘blasphemous content’ on TikTok and hurt the sentiments of Muslims. An FIR was registered against him under various sections of the Anti-Terrorism Act and the Electronic Crimes Prohibition Act based on the complaint of the police officer.
No Muslim punished
All Minority Alliance president Akmal Bhatti said that despite a year having passed, not a single person (Muslim) who set fire to Christian houses and places of worship in Jaranwala has been punished. He lamented, “Hardly 12 Muslims are currently facing trial in the case and the rest have either been acquitted or released on bail.”
