INDEED, no compromise could be made on the country’s blasphemy laws but equally important is that these are not misused or abused. In the past one has seen the mob whilst taking the law into their hands resorted to violent and barbaric acts against the alleged blasphemy which only brought bad name to the country. If somebody has committed blasphemy, the law should be allowed to take its course as the mob cannot be allowed to do justice on the roads as it only leads to lawlessness and anarchy.
A Chinese national working at the Dasu hydropower project was taken into police custody on Monday after labourers’ at the dam site accused him of making blasphemous remarks during a heated argument. Whilst the police failed both in Sialkot and Nankana Sahib incidents to protect the alleged blasphemous persons, here, the prompt action on their part helped in moving the Chinese worker to a safe location. What has emerged so far from the locals is that the Chinese worker had complained to workers at the dam that precious time is being lost due to the prayer breaks. This enraged some of the workers and they fanned out to nearby villages, whipping up emotions. It is a matter of great satisfaction that local religious scholars and elders acted responsibly and came forward to defuse the situation. It is really important that a proper investigation is conducted whether or not the blasphemy has been committed in this case. A verbal clash on the timing of work cannot be termed as blasphemy as long as the Chinese worker did not cross the redline of insulting the religious belief. If the incident involves no blasphemous act, then the arrested person must be released and his security must be ensured. Mere on allegations, a person cannot be given punishment until it is proven that he has committed the crime. Already the work on Dasu Dam has greatly suffered because of a terrorist attack there back in July 2021. We will suggest to the authorities concerned to enhance the security of Chinese workers at the site and if anybody resorts to provocation must be taken into custody.
