An exponential rise in blasphemy cases and consequent jailing in religiously conservative Pakistan have sparked concerns among faith leaders.
According to the report of Pakistan’s National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR), the number of people arrested and jailed in the first half of this year increased threefold compared to last year.
The report of the state-run independent commission released on Oct. 31 said as of July 25, 767 people remained in prison across the country accused of committing blasphemy.
The report said the figure was 213 in 2023, 64 in 2022, 9 in 2021, and 11 in 2020.
The report is based on the commission’s investigation into blasphemy cases between October 2023-2024.
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