On Friday, March 1, 2024, two Christian brothers, Umair Saleem and Umar Saleem, were acquitted of blasphemy charges. The charges had led to Islamic attacks on 21 Christian churches in August 2023.
Various reasons have been speculated for the physical attacks on the churches in Jaranwala. The online media Morning Star News writes that the police investigation showed that the two men were framed by three other Christians who had a personal enmity towards them, says Tahir Bashir, the brothers' lawyer.
We don't know if the police have reached the correct result of their investigation. Lawyer Tahir Bashir says that the three Christians who made false accusations that the two brothers had desecrated the Quran and written blasphemous words have been arrested and charged with blasphemy, according to Morning Star News.
Tahir Bashir lawyer says: "The brothers are free and are with their family now. But it is not safe for them to return to Jaranwala because of a serious threat to their lives. Although they have been acquitted by the court, there have been several cases where people accused of blasphemy have been killed by vigilantes even though they were acquitted by the courts."
After the church attacks in August 2023, hundreds of Christians fled the town of Jaranwala. In addition, dozens of Christian homes and shops were damaged and looted by Muslim mobs after the allegations came to light. A school in the nearby town of Faisalabad, which the Danish European Mission supported the construction of, was also set on fire.
Read also: Christian school and many churches burned
The brothers were charged under Pakistan's notorious blasphemy law for "deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings", defiling the Quran and making derogatory remarks about Muhammad, which carries a mandatory death penalty. They were also charged with "prohibiting acts intended or likely to incite sectarian hatred." So far, no death penalty has been carried out by the authorities under Pakistan's blasphemy laws. However, vigilante mobs have killed both blasphemy defendants and politicians who wanted to change the blasphemy laws.
Read more about the blasphemy laws and insecurity for minorities in Pakistan: Pakistan's Christians must navigate one of the world's most insecure societies
The Supreme Court judges said at a recent hearing that they regretted that state officials are intimidated by rioters who incite people to attack the properties of religious minorities.
Pakistan's blasphemy laws, which the Islamist parties support, call for the death penalty for insulting Muhammad and make it punishable by life imprisonment to insult the Quran or Islam.
