A senate committee probing 333 blasphemy cases in four Pakistani provinces found recently that most of the accusations during the last five years were false.
On July 8, provincial home secretaries and senior police officials informed the senate’s committee on human rights that the fabricated cases frequently targeted Christians or members of other religious minorities in Pakistan, Christian Daily International-Morning Star News reported.
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Punjab Province logged the highest tally — 116 — for charges under the country’s blasphemy law Section 295-C, dealing with insulting Islam’s prophet Muhammad. Sindh Province recorded 29 cases under Section 295-C, but 96 under Section 295-B regarding desecration of the Quran. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province had 90-plus blasphemy cases and Balochistan Province 28, Christian Daily-Morning Star stated.
“Provincial officials acknowledged … that personal vendettas, family disputes and other private conflicts frequently motivated blasphemy allegations,” the news outlet reported. “[A]llegations have repeatedly sparked mob violence, extrajudicial killings and lengthy pretrial detention.”
World Watch
Pakistan is No. 8 on Open Doors’ 2026 World Watch List of the 50 places most difficult to be a Christian.
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