News Desk
Sargodha: Nazir Masih, a victim of the alleged misuse of Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, passed away on June 3, 2024, from injuries sustained during a brutal mob attack. He was 74 years old.
Masih was born on January 1, 1950. He was the brother of five siblings and father to two sons and five daughters, who are left grieving his loss. Despite the dedicated efforts of medical professionals at the Military Hospital in Rawalpindi, where he was receiving treatment, he succumbed to his injuries following head surgery.
The attack on Masih occurred on May 25, 2024, when an agitated mob, including children and local Muslims, assaulted him after blasphemy allegations were leveled against him. The mob pelted him with stones, beat him with sticks, and kicked him as he lay bleeding on the ground. Despite police efforts to intervene and rescue him, the mob’s violence persisted, resulting in multiple skull fractures and critical blood clots in his brain. The ambulance transporting Masih was also damaged by the mob, further complicating rescue efforts.
Doctors had declared the first 72 hours following Masih’s head surgery as critical. Despite the surgical removal of bone fragments from his brain, his condition remained precarious. Masih could not recover from his severe injuries and passed away last night.
Nazir Masih’s body was transported to his hometown of Sargodha, where he had established his own business through hard work. His funeral was held at the Gill Wala Christian graveyard, and he was buried at 2:30 p.m. following a post-mortem examination. The funeral was marked by protests and chants for justice from the local community.
The incident has sparked nationwide and international outrage, with widespread condemnation of the brutal attack and the misuse of blasphemy laws.
The Moderator of the Church of Pakistan and Bishop of Lahore, Most Reverend Bishop Azad Marshall, condemned the attack and posted a statement on the microblogging site X, calling for justice and urging national leaders to take action against such atrocities.
“Today every single Pakistani should be weighed by grief… Yet again, hate has brought us to the place where we must ask questions… Being a minority justifies a mob being whipped up and lives being devastated and people being killed? Who whips up these mobs? Who pursues the many crimes that exist in one incident and who promises us that this will never happen again? No one! But today let us look to God for Justice, let us trust in His intervention and His divine hope. Our prayers are with the family of Nazir Masih (Lazar) and with the community in Sargodha. We lift our voices in lament, in regret, in solidarity and for an honest plea for justice. I urge our leaders and those who were brought to power for the sake of such a time as this, not to go silent and not to turn their faces away from this atrocity. Do something, say something. May the Lord have mercy on our land.”
Nazir Masih’s death has highlighted the ongoing issue of blasphemy law misuse in Pakistan and the dire need for reforms to protect the innocent. His passing is mourned deeply by his family, community, and supporters worldwide who seek justice and an end to religious intolerance and violence.