Lahore, September 8, 2023 — A new blasphemy case has been filed today against a Christian couple, Shaukat Masih and Kiran, residing on the Millwali Street in Chaudhry Colony, Lahore.
According to the First Information Report (FIR), the complainant Muhammad Tamoor reported that last night, while near the Khanki Tikka shop close to the Rangers headquarters on Millwali Street, Chaudhry Colony, he noticed several pages falling from the roof of a nearby house. Concerned by this, he approached the house and knocked on the door. A lady named Kiran answered, and when questioned about the incident, she mentioned that it might involve her daughters, Sundas and Ruby, and her son, Sabir. At his insistence, Kiran permitted him to enter the house.
Upon reaching the second-floor rooftop, he discovered a pink bag tucked behind a water tank, containing additional pages from the Quran. Disturbed by this, he promptly contacted the emergency police on 15, who arrived at the scene. He handed over the bag and the Quranic pages to the police.
In his statement, the complainant requested the registration of a case against Shaukat and Kiran for allegedly desecrating the holy Quran by scattering its pages.
The police has registered a case under Section 295-B of the blasphemy law, which pertains to the "Defiling, etc. of a copy of the Holy Qur'an." This section prescribes severe punishment, including imprisonment for life, for wilfully defiling, damaging, desecrating, or using a copy of the Holy Qur'an or its extract in a derogatory manner or for any unlawful purpose.
Shaukat and his wife have been taken into police custody. The situation remains tense in the area.
