Human rights body raises concern over eviction of Christians by land mafia in Pakistan's Punjab
Christian farmers are being evicted from their lands by the mafia in Pakistan's Punjab, and the provincial government appears to be a silent spectator, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said on Wednesday.
Also Read | Five persons, including a Christian, arrested on blasphemy charges in Pakistan's Punjab
After conducting a fact-finding investigation on a complaint of the pastor of Church Derek Abad, the HRCP said that the Christian community's farmland has been occupied in Kot Addu, some 400 kms from Lahore.
The commission said it has found an alarming rise in Christians' farmland being occupied by local land mafias and a consistent failure by the state to uphold court rulings that protect these vulnerable farmers.
The Christian farmers informed the HRCP that their writ petition is pending in the Lahore High Court, which has issued a stay order to prevent any evictions. They said they are still awaiting land allotment letters, following judgments in their favour.
The HRCP said it is concerned that in the absence of such documentation, the farmers will lose the little land they currently cultivate.
"This will leave them vulnerable to forced displacement and without a source of income, increasing their risk of falling deeper into poverty."
The rights group also urged the Punjab government to issue land allotment letters to all eligible farmers in Derek Abad.
"The government must also take decisive legal action against land mafias and individuals involved in unlawful evictions and provide urgent protection to the affected families to ensure that they can live and work without fear of reprisal. As Christians, this community is doubly vulnerable and deserves recognition, legal protection and restitution for decades of state neglect," the commission said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
'Should do all it can': Pakistan delegation gets earful; US lawmaker tells Bilawal Bhutto to eliminate Jaish-e-Mohammad
NEW DELHI: US Congressman Brad Sherman on Thursday made a pointed advise to a Pakistani delegation, led by Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, that the country should "do all it can" to eliminate terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammad from the region and ensure protection of religious minorities in the country. In a social media post on X, Sherman said that he emphasised to the Pakistani delegation the importance of combatting terrorism and, in particular, the group Jaish-e-Mohammed, who murdered Daniel Pearl in 2002. "I emphasized to the Pakistani delegation the importance of combatting terrorism, and in particular, the group Jaish-e-Mohammed, who murdered my constituent Daniel Pearl in 2002," the Congressman said. "Pearl's family continues to live in my district, and Pakistan should do all it can to eliminate this vile group and combat terrorism in the region," he added. Daniel was kidnapped by jihadi terrorists in January 2002 while he was on his way to what he had expected would be an interview with Pakistani religious cleric Mubarak Ali Gilani in Karachi. The US lawmaker also told the Pakistani delegation that the protection of religious minorities in Pakistan remains an important issue. "Christians, Hindus and Ahmadiyya Muslims living in Pakistan must be allowed to practice their faith and participate in the democratic system without fear of violence, persecution, discrimination, or an unequal justice system.' Sherman further urged the Pakistani delegation to relay to their government the need to free Dr Shakil Afridi, who continues to languish in prison for helping the United States kill Osama bin Laden. 'Freeing Dr Afridi represents an important step in bringing closure for victims of 9/11,' he said. Afridi is a Pakistani physician who helped the CIA run a polio vaccination programme in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to collect DNA samples of bin Laden's family. Afridi was arrested by Pakistani authorities shortly after the American raid on bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad in May 2011. In 2012, a Pakistani court sentenced Afridi to 33 years in prison. The Pakistani delegation timed its visit to the US capital around the same time as a multi-party delegation of Indian parliamentarians led by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor is in Washington DC. The all-party delegation is briefing key interlocutors about Operation Sindoor in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack and India's strong resolve to fight terrorism emanating from Pakistan. Bhutto also landed in the US at the same time as the Tharoor-led delegation. Bhutto met UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres with his delegation as well as Security Council Ambassadors in New York and later travelled to Washington in Pakistan's bid to internationalise the conflict with India as well as the Kashmir issue, but instead got instructed to deal with terrorism emanating from its soil.
The Hindu
8 hours ago
- The Hindu
Retired judge M.S. Janarthanam passes away at 89 in Chennai
Retired Madras High Court judge and former chairman of the State Backward Classes Commission, Justice M.S. Janarthanam, passed away in Chennai on Friday (June 6, 2025). He was 89. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin announced that the funeral of Justice Janarthanam, who had also served as president of the Tamil Nadu State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, would be held with police honours, in recognition of his contributions to social justice. In his condolence message, Mr. Stalin recalled that Justice Janarthanam served as a judge of the Madras High Court from 1988 to 1998, during which he delivered several landmark judgments. He also served as chairman of the State Backward Classes Commission from 2006 to 2015. 'It was on the basis of his recommendations that reservations were implemented for Muslims, Christians, and Arundhathiyars in Tamil Nadu. He carved a niche for himself in the history of social justice. The demise of Justice M.S. Janarthanam is an irreparable loss to the cause of social justice,' Mr. Stalin said. 'Shining example' In his condolence message, PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss said that Justice Janarthanam had recommended a 10.5% reservation for Vanniyars, and described him as a shining example of how a chairman of the Tamil Nadu Backward Classes Commission should perform.
NDTV
9 hours ago
- NDTV
The Trump-Elon Feud Timeline: Best Buddies Broadcast Their Breakup
Quick Read Summary is AI generated, newsroom reviewed. A public feud erupts between President Trump and Elon Musk over a tax bill, featuring insults and threats on social media. Musk criticises Trump's policies, while Trump threatens to cut Musk's federal contracts, causing Tesla shares to plummet 14%. The breakup between the world's most powerful politician and the world's richest man is playing out in a manner befitting an era of hyperreality: with stunning speed, wild recriminations, and in public via television and their own social media platforms. President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, who just last week stood together in the Oval Office to proclaim their lasting friendship, traded barbs and insults in real time on Thursday. Proclamations of sadness, ingratitude and disappointment by the men soon devolved into an exchange of threats. The rift had been widening since Musk on Tuesday broadcast his opposition to Trump's signature tax and spending bill, which the chief executive of Tesla Inc. and Space Exploration Technologies Corp. labeled a "disgusting abomination" sure to wreck the nation's finances. By mid-afternoon Thursday, Musk was posting on his X platform that Trump would never have won back the White House without his help. Trump called the billionaire "crazy" and threatened to cancel his companies' federal contracts. Musk shot back, pledging to decommission the all-important Dragon spacecraft that underpins the International Space Station. Tesla shares plunged. Musk kicked off his X activity on Thursday with a repost of the Christian news satire site The Babylon Bee, which had a "story" addressing the bill. The headline: Congress Warns Failure to Pass Spending Bill Might Delay Destruction of the Country The billionaire made a direct swipe at the president, reposting a 2013 tweet from Trump criticizing Republicans for raising the debt ceiling. "Wise words," Musk said. Trump soon began remarks from an Oval Office meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Musk reposted another Trump missive from the past, this one from 2012 saying no member of Congress should be reelected if the US budget isn't balanced. Around noon, Trump started addressing Musk's criticism. "Elon is upset because we took the EV mandate, and you know, which was a lot of money for electric vehicles," he said. "They're having a hard time the electric vehicles and they want us to pay billions of dollars in subsidies. And, you know, Elon knew this from the beginning." He went on to say Musk knew the inner workings of the bill. He said he and Musk had a great relationship - but that may be over. "I'm very disappointed in Elon," he said. "I've helped Elon a lot." All the while, Merz sat quietly by before the conversation moved on to discussion of topics such as Ukraine and Russia. Musk took a break from his criticism to praise the president's decision to cut funding for California high-speed rail, calling it a sensible move. But eight minutes later, Musk appeared to respond in real time to Trump's claims about the EV mandate: "Whatever." The Tesla CEO said he'd be fine for the EV cuts to stay in the bill, but noted that oil and gas subsidies weren't touched (which was "very unfair!!"). He also criticized the amount of "pork" in the legislation. Then, the posts keep coming. Musk said he was never shown the bill. Musk replies to X user Autism Capital touting his role in the election, saying that without him, Trump would've lost and Democrats would control the House. He followed up with "Such ingratitude". Musk reposts a post from an X user called Wall Street Mav that expressed hope the disagreement didn't damage the relationship between the billionaire and Trump. Musk quickly follows with a video from when Trump touted Teslas in front of the White House. "Remember this?" Musk said, tagging the president. Trump jumps into the fray on his Truth Social platform. He said he asked the billionaire to leave and that Musk went "CRAZY". The president quickly followed with a huge threat to the businesses of the world's richest man. He said the easiest way to save money would be to cut government contracts from Musk's companies. Total revenue for SpaceX and Tesla from federal unclassified contracts since fiscal year 2000 is $22.5 billion, according to Bloomberg Government data. Musk responds to Trump's posts: "Such an obvious lie. So sad." He then reposted a reference to how terminating government contracts would end the International Space Station, with laughing emojis. "Go ahead, make my day..." he said. Musk said it's "time to drop a really big bomb," insinuating that Trump was withholding the release of files related to disgraced New York financier Jeffrey Epstein because of president's own presence in them. Musk then made his own threat, saying he would decommission SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, which ferries cargo and people to the International Space Station for the US. As the spat unfolded throughout the afternoon, Tesla shares tumbled and investors panicked on X. Ross Gerber of Gerber Kawasaki Inc. urged someone to take the phone away from Musk. By the time the market closed, Tesla shares had fallen 14%, the biggest decline since March. Later in the evening, in response to an X user with the handle "@Fab25june" who called on the two men to "cool off," Musk said he wouldn't decommission the Dragon spacecraft after all.
