SAHIWAL (MNN); An anti-terrorism court in Sahiwal on Monday handed down death sentences to two individuals convicted in a blasphemy case. The court also awarded them a combined 22 years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed fines totalling Rs550,000.
The case was registered on November 15, 2025, at Kameer Police Station in Sahiwal district under FIR No. 710/24, following a complaint lodged by a local resident. According to the FIR, the alleged blasphemous act took place on July 17, 2024, but the case was registered nearly four months later on the basis of statements from two local witnesses.
After hearing the arguments, the court found the accused guilty under Sections 295-A and 295-C of the Pakistan Penal Code, Sections 7 and 9 of the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997, and Section 11 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016.
In its detailed judgment, the court sentenced each convict to death and fined them Rs500,000 under Section 295-C. They were also awarded 10 years’ imprisonment under Section 295-A, seven years under PECA 2016, and five years’ imprisonment along with a fine of Rs50,000 under the Anti-Terrorism Act.
A senior police officer in Sahiwal told Dawn that a total of 22 blasphemy-related cases were registered in the district during 2025.
The ruling is being described as one of the harshest sentences awarded by the court in blasphemy-related cases this year. Earlier, in March, a Rawalpindi court had sentenced five accused persons to death, life imprisonment and an additional 100 years in jail in a similar case. In February, the same court also awarded death sentences to four individuals for sharing blasphemous content online.
