Blasphemy remains one of Pakistan’s most controversial laws. According to Human Rights groups, accusations of blasphemy are often use to settle personal disputes or abuse others.Political parties and civic societies in Pakistan should take more active roles to aware people about the misuse of these laws,they observed.
There were several violent incidents relating to blasphemy on recent years such as Mashaal Khan, a journalism student at Abdul Wali Khan University in Mardar, Pakistan, was beaten and shot dead by fellow students angered by accusations that he had posted blasphemous content online.
Similarly, In 2014, a furious mob in Punjab beat a Christian couple to death over blasphemy accusations.
In 2011, Punjab Governor Salman Taseer was killed by his bodyguard after Taseer made a proposal to reform the existing blasphemy laws.
But, Pakistan’s government’s stand is clear in this respect. They have been advocating strict enforcement of blasphemy laws. Government even warn Pakistani citizens not to post or share or upload ‘objectionable’ materials like text, videos,audios online through newspaper advertising and text messages on mobile phones to warn millions of Pakistanis not to post, share or upload “blasphemous” material online.
Human Rights activists accuse that minorities specially Christians are under threat and it is quite easy in Pakistan to arrest someone for blasphemy accusations.
According to experts there has been a sharp increase in the number of blasphemy cases in Pakistan since the amendment of the original law.
And after the acquittal of Aasiya Noreen, a Christian woman by the Supreme Court and the nation wide violent protest by Tehreek-e-Labbaik party of Pakistan led by Mohammad Afzal Quadri once again proved that blasphemy is one of most sensitive issues in Pakistan and obviously the most controversial one.
