Two years after Islamist attacks on Christians in the Jaranwala area in Punjab Province, Pakistan, hopes for justice are dimming amid the sabotaging of prosecution efforts, advocates said.
None of the perpetrators have been convicted after they ransacked and damaged more than 25 church buildings and 85 homes of Christians in Jaranwala Tehsil of Faisalabad District, on Aug. 16, 2023, and protests on Saturday (Aug. 16) called for government action.
Two years prior, the frenzied mob of thousands of Muslims attacked after two Christian brothers were accused of writing blasphemous content and desecrating the Quran. The attack drew nationwide condemnation, and more than 300 Muslims were arrested for the riots; most were either bailed out or discharged due to defective police investigation.
On June 4, an anti-terrorism court in Faisalabad acquitted 10 named suspects involved in burning a church building and ransacking a Christian’s home during the violence. The petitioner’s lawyer blamed police for the acquittals despite strong evidence against the suspects. Similar verdicts are expected in the remaining cases related to the attacks, he previously told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News.
Various protest rallies were held in Jaranwala, Lahore, Karachi and other cities on Aug. 16 (Saturday) to mark two years since the attacks and raise renewed calls for government action. The main event was organized in Jaranwala by the Victims Committee, where community leaders criticized the government for failure to effectively prosecute rioters.
The speakers were also critical of the negative role played by some Christians, who they said were damaging the legal cases at the behest of government authorities.
“We are extremely disappointed as all the perpetrators have been released on bail or acquitted of the charges due to weak police investigation,” said committee convener Lala Robin Daniel. “Some victims have still not received the financial compensation and rehabilitation promised by the government after the incident. Efforts are now being made to divide the community in Jaranwala to damage the cases.”
He said that the Victims Committee had decided to organize sit-in demonstrations in various areas of Jaranwala to draw the government’s attention to their plight.
“We appeal to all Christians of Jaranwala to hold sit-in demonstrations in their streets till our demands are met by the government,” he added. “We will remain peaceful and use the social media to continue to remind the government that it owes us justice.”
Rwadari Tehreek (Movement for Equality) Chairman Samson Salamat said he regretted that some Christian were not only using the plight of the Jaranwala victims to fraudulently raise funds for themselves but were also damaging the cases.
“I’m disappointed to see that no church leader or politician is present in this gathering today to show solidarity with the victims,” Salamat said. “Even the Punjab chief minister, who calls the religious minorities a jewel in Punjab’s crown, hasn’t even once visited Jaranwala to express her support or inquire into the progress of the cases.”
Salamat warned Christians in Jaranwala to remain alert against attempts to divide the community.
“You have remained steadfast in your pursuit of justice for two years, and we believe your commitment will not waver in the future as well,” he said. “We assure you of our full support in this struggle.”
Criticizing claims made by government leaders and others that religious minorities were safe in Pakistan, Salamat said that the two-year delay in justice in Jaranwala had exposed this false narrative.
In Lahore, a protest organized outside the Lahore Press Club included Christian activists Ghazala Shafique and Luke Victor, who demanded stern punishment for the perpetrators of violence in Jaranwala.
“The Jaranwala incident is a grim reminder of the deep-rooted intolerance and systemic discrimination faced by Christians in Pakistan,” they said in a press statement. “The government’s failure to punish the accused even after two years and its inaction against extremist groups has put a question mark on the state’s commitment towards the protection of minorities.”
Cecil and Iris Chaudhry Foundation Chairperson Michelle Chaudhry said in a statement that mobs and police were repeatedly setting precedents for vigilante injustice.
“No Christian in Pakistan would dare to commit blasphemy, but the dangers posed by the misuse of the blasphemy laws and the failure of state institutions to act swiftly to protect its citizens had been exposed on numerous occasions,” Chaudhry said. “Today yet again we call upon the government of Pakistan to ensure that all perpetrators of this heinous crime are brought to justice, and that the survivors of Jaranwala receive a comprehensive rehabilitation, financial compensation and long-term support which they were promised.”
Impunity for violence against religious minorities in Pakistan has to end, Chaudhry said, demanding the government take urgent and meaningful steps to reform laws misused to target vulnerable communities, particularly the blasphemy provisions.
Of 5,213 suspects apprehended in the Jaranwala riots, 380 were arrested while 4,833 remained at large, according to Amnesty International. One years after the attacks, 228 of the arrested suspects were released on bail and 77 others had the charges against them dropped, according to Babu Ram Pant, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for South Asia, adding at that time, “despite the authorities’ assurances of accountability, the grossly inadequate action has allowed a climate of impunity for the perpetrators of the Jaranwala violence.”
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.
The two Christian brothers in Jaranwala were acquitted of the blasphemy charges after an anti-terrorism court found that they had been framed by another Christian following a personal dispute.
Pakistan ranked eighth on Open Doors’ 2025 World Watch List of the most difficult places to be a Christian.
