Pakistan (MNN) — A Pakistani judge has resigned after being allegedly linked to a “blasphemy business gang” that trapped Christians and other minorities with false blasphemy charges. Justice Chaudhry Abdul Aziz of the Lahore High Court stepped down on March 6 citing “personal reasons.” But reports suggest his resignation came after an investigative report broke about his ties to the criminal ring that tricked people into blasphemy accusations.
Floyd Brobbel with The Voice of the Martyrs Canada explains, “It was quite unethical that the way they were trying to trap people into some sort of blasphemy against Islam or against Muhammad or against the Quran, and then making sure that those charges would go through.”
Days before stepping down, Aziz had blocked actions that exposed flaws in how blasphemy cases were being handled.
Christians in the legal crosshairs
Christians in Pakistan. (Photo courtesy of The Voice of the Martyrs USA)
This case is just one example of how Pakistan’s blasphemy laws are often misused to target minority Christians. Recently, the Lahore High Court pushed for an investigation into the growing number of blasphemy cases, raising concerns that organized groups might be behind them.
“We’ve seen a lot of Christians targeted, and other religious minorities in Pakistan would be targeted,” says Brobbel. “Certainly, I think those who are trying to expose the inner workings of this group could face a number of security challenges and issues. When other groups and lawyers or high profile government officials have tried to speak up on behalf of religious minorities and defend them, they have been assassinated in the past.”
With the resignation of Justice Aziz and growing pressure for investigations, there’s hope that Pakistan will take steps to protect minorities from these abuses. But without real legal reforms, many Christians still face a dangerous reality.
“The blasphemy laws have been an issue, not only in Pakistan but in other Muslim countries. But in particular, in Pakistan, these blasphemy laws were used to incite hatred and incite unjust attacks on Christians and arrests of Christians,” says Brobbel.
“On the ground level, often imams in their mosque can incite their people through saying that a particular Christian was caught blaspheming…and they can incite a mob to attack Christians. We’ve seen this happen.”
The start of reform?
With blasphemy entrapment and false accusations now being called out in Pakistan, it’s a first step towards reform.
(Photo courtesy Voice of the Martyrs USA)
Yet, Brobbel points out, “The concern remains that while we can see some changes hopefully happening at a higher level, will it filter down to the grassroots level? Will those things be dealt with? That remains to be seen.
“We need to encourage that if authorities are trying to weed out and dismantle this blasphemy ring that’s happening, it also needs to go a step further and ensure that these blasphemy laws (or anti-blasphemy laws) will be dealt with completely…where people truly can be free from this type of thing. So we need to pray that that will continue to happen.”
Brobbel also urges, “We need to pray that the truth would continue to come forward, that people would be courageous in exposing what is happening with this group, and hopefully see that this group would be dismantled.”
Header photo: Lahore, Pakistan (Photo courtesy of Syed Bilal Javaid via Unpslash)
