The interim Punjab government on Wednesday announced it has ordered a high-level inquiry into mob attacks on several churches and homes of the Christian community over alleged blasphemy by two residents of Faisalabad’s Jaranwala district.
“This was a well thought out plan to disrupt peace and a high-level investigation is underway regarding the desecration of the holy Quran and incidents that took place afterward,” read a statement issued by the provincial government. It further claimed that police had “foiled” attempts to attack homes of minorities and a “peace committee” had been tasked with preventing the occurrence of similar attempts.
However, despite the statement’s claims, reports from the city indicate that several homes belonging to the Christian community were ransacked. There is also uncertainty over the number of churches attacked, with official statements claiming four were torched, against local residents’ claims of nearly a dozen being targeted by a violent mob incited by local clerics. The National Commission for Human Rights, which had deployed a team to the site, said eight churches had been burnt. It also lamented that blasphemy laws had “repeatedly” been misused with “impunity” and demanded police take swift and strong action against all perpetrators.
According to footage available on social media, as well as local reporters, a mob of hundreds gathered in the predominantly Christian area on the outskirts of Faisalabad after some locals alleged that the holy Quran had been desecrated by a Christian cleaner and his brother. These allegations were then repeated by clerics through mosque loudspeakers, who incited people to “react” to the incident and “make an example” out of the alleged blasphemers. The situation was worsened when supporters of the Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) exhorted people to reach the site of the alleged incident, where the gathered mob set the accused’s house on fire before expanding their ire on churches, a local cemetery and the homes of other Christians.
The mob also turned on Jaranwala Assistant Commissioner Shaukat Masih, who they accused of “protecting” the alleged blasphemers. As he had already fled when the mob reached his office, they torched it and left it in ruin. Subsequently, they demanded Masih be removed from his post, with the Punjab government making him an officer on special duty to “pacify” the rioters.
As the violence continued, Christian leaders took to social media to condemn police action, maintaining law enforcers had played the role of silent spectators as the mob attacked the homes of Christian families, forcing them to flee.
Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar called for stern action against those responsible for the violence, stressing he was “gutted” by the visuals he was seeing. The independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), meanwhile, said the incident must be condemned in no uncertain terms. “The frequency and scale of such attacks—which are systematic, violent and often uncontainable—appear to have increased in recent years. Not only has the state failed to protect its religious minorities, but it has also allowed the far right to permeate and fester within society and politics,” it said. “Both the perpetrators and instigators of this violence must be identified and punished to the full extent of the law. The government must waste no time in raising and equipping special police forces to protect religious minorities’ sites of worship as directed by the 2014 Supreme Court judgment,” it added.
Pakistani bishop Azad Marshall, in a statement, said the Christian community was “deeply pained and distressed” by the events. “We cry out for justice and action from law enforcement and those who dispense justice and the safety of all citizens to intervene immediately and assure us that our lives are valuable in our own homeland,” he posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Arrests and action
According to authorities in the Punjab government, over 100 suspects have been taken into custody over their role in the mob violence that unfolded a day earlier. The government has also imposed Section 144 in Jaranwala, banning any gathering of five or more people, and called in paramilitary Rangers to help ensure security.
Police have also registered a case against the two suspects accused of desecrating the Quran under sections 295C and 295B of the Pakistan Penal Code. This has prompted backlash on social media, with activists noting authorities appear more concerned with appeasing the perpetrators of violence than ensuring justice for their victims.
In a regular press briefing, the U.S. State Department has urged Pakistan to investigate the mob attacks. “We are deeply concerned that churches and homes were targeted in response to reported Quran desecration in Pakistan,” said spokesperson Vedant Patel. He said that while the U.S. backed free expression, “violence or the threat of violence is never an acceptable form of expression.”