Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy statutes are being twisted into tools of terror by criminal networks, instilling dread in hundreds of families nationwide. The latest exposé details how extortion rackets thrive by framing resistors with bogus charges.
The National Commission for Human Rights reports over 450 victims ensnared, primarily males, including 10 Christians—of whom five met grim fates in custody.
A pivotal moment came in July when the Islamabad High Court, acting on 101 families’ petitions, mandated a federal probe commission. An appeals court quickly halted it, stalling accountability.
Shockingly, FIA cybercrime officers stand accused of aiding these fabrications, betraying their investigative mandate.
The ordeal of 33-year-old rickshaw operator Aamir Shahzad exemplifies the pattern. Enticed from home in Lahore for a delivery, he was abducted and later ‘arrested’ by FIA for supposed online blasphemy. His mother’s regular prison meetings reveal a jail full of false-accusation sufferers.
Dubbed ‘blasphemy gangs’ by advocates, these groups exploit personal vendettas against the vulnerable. This systemic perversion calls for radical reforms to safeguard innocents and restore faith in Pakistan’s legal framework.