Badshahi Mosque, Lahore, Pakistan. (Romero Maia, Creative Commons)
LAHORE, Pakistan (Christian Daily International–Morning Star News) – A court in Pakistan on Monday (July 6) acquitted a Catholic accused of blasphemy, his lawyer said.
Attorney Asad Jamal of the Lahore High Court said Lahore Additional Sessions Judge Abdul Ghaffar acquitted 37-year-old Dennis Albert, jailed since April 27, 2024, after a Muslim accused him of desecrating pages of the Quran in Lahore, capital of Punjab Province.
Albert was charged under Section 295-A of Pakistan’s Penal Code, which criminalizes deliberate acts intended to outrage religious feelings and carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, and Section 295-B, which pertains to the desecration of the Quran and is punishable by life imprisonment.
“The court found significant legal deficiencies in the police investigation and noted inconsistencies in the testimony of prosecution witnesses,” Jamal told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. “The complainant, Mubeen Ilyas, and other witnesses were unable to identify Dennis Albert as the person responsible or testify that they had seen him throwing the quranic pages onto the road.”
Jamal said the court also rejected CCTV footage submitted by police because investigators had failed to follow the required procedures and did not have the footage forensically examined to verify its authenticity.
“It was the prosecution’s responsibility to prove beyond reasonable doubt that Albert had deliberately desecrated the quranic pages or intentionally sought to offend religious sentiments,” he said. “It failed to meet that burden, and the court deserves credit for deciding the case strictly on its merits.”
Kashif Aslam, program manager of the Cecil and Iris Chaudhry Foundation, which arranged Albert’s legal defense, welcomed the acquittal but said the ordeal had left the family displaced and fearful for their safety.
“It is deeply unfortunate that an innocent man spent more than two years in prison on a false accusation,” Aslam said. “Following Albert’s arrest, his family was forced to relocate because they lived in the same neighborhood where two Christian youths had previously been charged with blasphemy. Although those two men were acquitted in July 2025, security concerns have prevented them from returning home. Albert now faces the same reality.”
Aslam said Albert would need to be resettled in another part of Lahore or in another city to ensure his safety and appealed for financial support to help him rebuild his life.
“Before his arrest, Albert earned a modest living by driving a rented rickshaw,” he said. “He has limited education, and securing employment after more than two years in prison will be extremely difficult. Support for his rehabilitation would help him regain his independence and earn a dignified livelihood.”
Albert was accused of desecrating pages of the Quran by allegedly standing barefoot on them on a roadside.
His brother, Imran Albert, previously told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News that Albert had just dropped off a passenger and was waiting for another fare when passersby confronted and assaulted him.
“His shoes were inside the rickshaw, and he stepped out barefoot because the road surface was extremely hot,” Imran Albert said. “Without realizing it, he stepped on some papers lying on the roadside. He had no idea they contained quranic text.”
Pakistan’s blasphemy laws have long drawn criticism from human rights organizations and legal experts, who say they are frequently misused to settle personal disputes, seize property and target members of religious minorities. Although no one has been executed by the state under the country’s blasphemy laws, allegations of blasphemy have repeatedly triggered mob violence, extrajudicial killings and prolonged pretrial detention.
On July 1, a 61-year-old Catholic suffering from advanced dementia died after nearly a year in jail awaiting trial on a false blasphemy charge. Amir Peter died due to poor medical care days before a court was scheduled to hear medical testimony supporting his bail application, said Katherine Sapna, executive director of the advocacy organization Christians’ True Spirit (CTS).
Peter, of Nishat Colony in Lahore, was arrested on July 19, 2025 after a Muslim shopkeeper, in retaliation for Peter accusing him of overcharging him, accused him of violating Section 295-C of Pakistan’s blasphemy law, which criminalizes derogatory remarks about Islam’s prophet Muhammad and carries a mandatory death sentence.
International advocacy groups continue to rank Pakistan among the world’s most difficult countries for Christians. In its 2026 World Watch List, Open Doors ranked Pakistan eighth among the 50 countries where Christians face the most severe persecution, citing systemic discrimination, mob violence, forced conversions, bonded labor and gender-based abuses. The organization also said weak law enforcement and widespread impunity have enabled perpetrators of anti-Christian violence to evade accountability.
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- Badshahi Mosque, Lahore, Pakistan. (Romero Maia, Creative Commons)
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