PPP HR Cell concerned over involving citizens in false blasphemy cases

ISLAMABAD: The PPP Human Rights Cell Tuesday expressed its concerns over reports that some unscrupulous elements ensnare unsuspecting innocent citizens in fabricated blasphemy cases for extortion.

According to the reports, offensive imagery overlaid with religious texts is disseminated through the social media platforms by hacking the citizens’ mobile devices and other unethical means and then using it as pretext to register false cases in collusion with unscrupulous elements in the law-enforcement agencies.

“The issue was first reported by the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR) in its report documenting its investigation into blasphemy cases during the year October 2023 to October 2024,” said President of the Human Rights Cell Farhatullah Babar in a statement.

Babar said according to report, young men were trapped through female operatives behind pseudonyms to lure them in unethical online engagement and then file cases against them. “The report not only pointed out “disregard of due process” but also said that “arrests were often carried out by private individuals rather than law enforcement personnel. He said last year also a special report by the Additional Inspector General Police, Special Branch Punjab, Lahore, had acknowledged the existence of a suspicious gang trapping the youth.

Babar said even higher officers of the FIA had also acknowledged the existence of such a racket. An office order by the cybercrime wing circulated among all officers acknowledging that some officers had “knitted an unholy net in connivance with professional women to trap innocent citizens” warned of serious action against those involved.”

It also directed that “no raid will be conducted and no FIR will be registered without prior approval,” he said. He said the organized nature of this network was demonstrated recently when a hateful defamatory campaign was launched on the social media against Justice Muhammad Iqbal Kalhoro of SHC after the judge granted post-arrest bail to some accused implicated in such false cases.