Dawood William (2nd from left) and Shahid Aftab (3rd from left) with attorneys after they were acquitted on April 18, 2025. (Christian Daily International-Morning Star News)
LAHORE, Pakistan (Christian Daily International–Morning Star News) – A Christian accused of writing blasphemous content that sparked violent riots in Jaranwala, Pakistan in August 2023 was sentenced to death along with other harsh penalties on Good Friday (April 18).
Pervaiz Masih had been arrested and charged under Pakistan’s widely condemned blasphemy statutes, including 295-A against inciting religious sentiments under various sections; 295-B against desecrating the Quran; 295-C against insulting Islam’s prophet; 120-B against criminal conspiracy; 34 against acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention; 37, which cites vicarious liability due to mutual cooperation; and Section 9 of the Anti-Terrorism Act of 1997 against offenses related to the possession or use of explosives or other terrorist-related materials.
Anti-Terrorism Judge Javed Iqbal Sheikh convicted Masih, alias Kodu, and sentenced him to the death penalty under Section 295-C with a fine of 2 million rupees ($7,133 USD); to 10 years of prison and a fine of 1 million rupees ($3,566 USD) in the offense registered under Section 295-A; to life imprisonment under Section 295-B; and five years in prison and a fine of 500,000 rupees ($1,783 USD) under Section 9 of the ATA.
Masih had allegedly conspired to falsely implicate another Christian, Umair Saleem alias Raja Masih, in a blasphemy case to settle a personal vendetta. Court testimony indicated Pervaiz Masih’s wife, identified only as “T,” started an affair with Raja Masih in 2020 while her husband was imprisoned in a narcotics peddling case. When Pervaiz Masih found out about the affair after his release, he allegedly planned to take revenge on Raja Masih by involving him in a fake blasphemy case.
The court acquitted two other Christian suspects, Shahid Aftab and Dawood William, giving them the benefit of the doubt. The two Christians were accused of helping Pervaiz Masih fabricate blasphemous content to falsely implicate Umair Saleem and his brother Umer Saleem, alias Rocky Masih. Though the two Christian Saleem brothers were arrested on blasphemy charges, they were discharged from the case months later after police investigation found them innocent.
Attorney Nadeem Hassan of legal aid organization Christians’ True Spirit represented Shahid Aftab and Dawood William in the case. He said prosecutors failed to prove that Aftab and William had aided their relative, Pervaiz Masih, in the crime.
“William and Aftab are Masih’s relatives. It was alleged that William had downloaded and printed the photographs of the two brothers, Rocky and Raja, and given it to Masih who used them with the blasphemous content,” Hassan told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. “Aftab was accused of helping Masih in writing the alleged blasphemous content in his house. However, the court admitted our arguments that there was no direct evidence against the two Christians.”
Pervaiz Maish has the right to challenge the anti-terrorism court’s verdict in the Lahore High Court, he added.
‘No Justice for Christians’
Christians on social media criticized the verdict as too harsh, with many questioning lack of justice for Christians hurt in the violence led by Islamists in Jaranwala, which burned multiple church buildings and ransacked more than 80 homes and businesses of Christians.
“The court has convicted a Christian for allegedly carrying out the alleged blasphemous act, but what about those people who burned our churches and homes and are now roaming freely on bail?” said the Rev. Ghazala Shafique, a Karachi-based rights activist, in a Facebook video. “Why didn’t the police and prosecution investigate those cases with the same zeal that they have shown in Masih’s case?”
The Church of Pakistan pastor said the harsh verdict given to Masih was a twisted “Easter gift to the Christians from the Punjab government.”
She said the judgment had dampened Easter for Christians already reeling from inaction against the perpetrators of violence in Jaranwala. More than 25 churches and 85 homes of Christians in Jaranwala were ransacked and looted on Aug. 16, 2023 by a frenzied mob of thousands of Muslims after accusations surfaced of Christians writing blasphemous content and desecrating the Quran. The attack drew nationwide condemnation.
Only a dozen suspects of the more than 300 people arrested are facing trials in an anti-terrorism court, the chairman of the Minorities Alliance Pakistan, attorney Akmal Bhatti, told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News last August.
“A majority of the suspects have either been bailed out or were discharged from the cases due to defective police investigation,” he said.
Amnesty International found that of 5,213 suspects, 380 were arrested while 4,833 remained at large.
“Of the arrested suspects, 228 were released on bail and 77 others had the charges against them dropped,” Amnesty stated, based on information from police after filing a Right to Information Request.
Trials of suspects have not started, and about 40 percent of victims who lost property are still awaiting government compensation, according to Amnesty.
“Despite the authorities’ assurances of accountability, the grossly inadequate action has allowed a climate of impunity for the perpetrators of the Jaranwala violence,” Babu Ram Pant, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for South Asia, said in the statement.
Blasphemy accusations are common in Pakistan, and those found guilty of insulting Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, can be sentenced to death. While authorities have yet to carry out death sentences for blasphemy, often the accusation alone can spark riots and incite mobs to violence.
Pakistan, whose population is more than 96 percent Muslim, ranked eighth on Open Doors’ 2025 World Watch List of the most difficult places to be a Christian.
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- Dawood William (2nd from left) and Shahid Aftab (3rd from left) with attorneys after they were acquitted on April 18, 2025. (Christian Daily International-Morning Star News)
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