LAHORE
A scheduled press conference by the families of individuals accused in alleged blasphemy cases was cancelled at the last moment by the club administration on Tuesday, prompting the families to stage a protest outside the press club premises.
According to the families, the press conference had been formally scheduled at the Lahore Press Club (LPC), with a specific time agreed upon in advance. However, shortly before it was due to begin, the club administration informed them that the press conference had been cancelled. The reason provided for the cancellation was the arrival of a foreign delegation at the press club.
Following the sudden cancellation, the families of the accused gathered outside the Lahore Press Club to protest and raise their demands. Chanting slogans and holding placards, the protesters expressed concern over what they described as the prolonged incarceration of their relatives who are facing alleged blasphemy charges.
During the protest, one of the participants told Voicepk that his son had passed matriculation and was working at a paint shop before his arrest. He alleged that his son became involved in a case after receiving a message from a woman through Facebook Messenger. According to him, the online interaction developed into a friendship, after which his son was allegedly trapped and later charged in a blasphemy-related case.
The protester stated that his son is currently detained as an under-trial prisoner (UTP).
He further shared details of the incident, alleging that his son had received an image from the woman through Facebook messenger. He claimed that the image contained a woman’s nude photograph with sacred religious verses written on it. According to the family member, after receiving the image, the woman’s phone number became unreachable.
He added that when contact was later re-established, his son questioned the woman about sending such content. The woman allegedly responded by stating that she was unaware of the image and suggested that someone else might have used her phone. She then asked his son to send the image back to her to clarify what had been sent. After his son shared the image, the woman’s phone number was again switched off, following which a blasphemy case was registered against his son, the protester claimed.
Another protest participant shared a similar account, stating that his son had also been implicated in an alleged blasphemy case through what he described as a honey-trap. He claimed that a woman identified as Iman befriended his son online and later played a role in involving him in the case. As a result, his son has been in custody, awaiting trial.
A woman participating in the protest said her son has been imprisoned for the past three years in connection with an alleged blasphemy case. Speaking to the media, she appealed to Govt to form a commission to investigate such cases. She stressed the need for an impartial inquiry into the circumstances under which these cases are registered.
The protesters collectively claimed that more than 400 under-trial prisoners are currently incarcerated in various jails across Pakistan in what they described as false blasphemy cases. They said that many of these detainees have been behind bars for years without significant progress in their trials.
According to the protesters, those accused are facing prolonged legal processes, with limited access to bail and delays in court proceedings. They said that families continue to suffer due to the lengthy detention of their relatives.
The participants further alleged that their loved ones had been targeted by what they described as an organized “blasphemy business gang,” which they claimed uses online platforms to trap individuals and later implicate them in blasphemy cases. They demanded that the government establish an independent commission to conduct transparent investigations into all blasphemy-related cases.
