Pakistani court sentences Christian man to death

Dozens of members from Pakistan’s Christian society rallied on Tuesday 2nd July 2024 in the southern port city of Karachi against the death sentence handed down to a Christian man on blasphemy charges, nearly a year after one of the worst mob attacks on Christians in the country.

Christians those who joined the rally which comes a day after a court in Sahiwal in the Punjab province announced the death sentence to Ehsan Shan after finding him guilty of sharing “hateful content” against Muslims on social media.

He was arrested in August 2023 after groups of Muslim men burned dozens of homes and churches in the city of Jaranwala in Punjab after some residents claimed they saw two Christian men desecrating pages from Islam’s holy book, the Quran. The two men were later arrested.

Shan’s lawyer Khurram Shahzad said on Monday he will appeal the verdict.

Blasphemy accusations are common in Pakistan. Under the country’s blasphemy laws, anyone found guilty of insulting Islam or Islamic religious figures can be sentenced to death. While authorities have yet to carry out a death sentence for blasphemy, often just the accusation can cause riots and incite mobs to violence, lynching and killings.

Earlier this month, 72-year-old Nazir Masih died after he was attacked by an angry mob in May following accusations of blasphemy.

We demand action against those who were involved in burning churches and homes of Christians in Jaranwala.