21-04-2025
Christian is sentenced to death for blasphemy in Pakistan after 'desecrating the Koran'
A Christian man in the the eastern Pakistani town of Jaranwala has been sentenced to death after being accused of desecrating the Koran, the Muslim holy book.
The 36-year-old will appeal his sentence after an anti-terrorism court convicted him of blasphemy on Friday, while acquitting two others accused of the same breach of the law.
The 2023 incident led to a series of mob attacks on a Christian neighbourhood in which hundreds of houses and churches were torched and thousands of people forced to flee their homes.
In addition to the death penalty, he was also sentenced to life imprisonment and fined Rs 3.5 million - equivalent to £9,400.
The court reportedly ruled that the man attempted to frame a father and son by placing their photographs alongside torn pages from the Quran, creating the false impression that they had desecrated the holy book.
Blasphemy is punishable by death in Pakistan. No one has been executed by the state for it, but numerous accused have been lynched by outraged mobs.
Jaranwala was the site of more than two dozen church arsons carried out by mobs which included far-right Islamists in 2023.
On 16 August, following reports that the Koran had been desecrated by two local men, riots broke out and hundreds of men armed with sticks and rocks attacked the Christian community in the city.
Churches were also attacked, with rioters either vandalising them or setting the buildings on fire.
Rizwan Khan, the regional police chief, said that 129 people in connection with the mob violence were arrested in the immediate aftermath.
It is thought that around 380 were arrested following the riots, while the government promised to help rebuild both trust and the damaged buildings.
At the time, Pakistan's Interim Prime Minister, Anwar ul-Haq Kakar, criticized the rioters and called on them to stop the violence, saying: 'Stern action would be taken against those who violate the law and target minorities.'.
US State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel called for a full investigation into the events, stating that 'we support peaceful freedom of expression and the right to freedom of religion and belief for everybody'.
Patricia Gossman, associate Asia director at Human Rights Watch reacted: 'The Faisalabad attack underscores the failings of Pakistan's police to adequately protect religious minority communities and respond promptly to violence targeting them.
'The lack of prosecutions of those responsible for such crimes in the past emboldens those who commit violence in the name of religion.'
Pakistan's Blasphemy law stems from section 295-C of the Pakistan Penal Code.
It states that whoever 'defiles the sacred name of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) shall be punished with death, or imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to a fine.'
Human rights groups have raised the plight of religious minorities continuing to suffer in Pakistan.
As well as Christians, the minority Shia Muslim population has been subject to sectarian attacks, especially in areas such as Parachinar.
Last week a mob beat a member of Pakistan's persecuted Ahmadiyya minority to death after hundreds of radical Islamists surrounded their place of worship in the port city of Karachi.
