Police in Pakistan this week arrested a mentally challenged Christian on blasphemy charges despite being aware of his condition, Morning Star News reported.
In Sahiwal, Punjab Province, Ghala Mandi police on Jan. 26 arrested Farhan Javed Masih, 28, after a local villager, Muhammad Bilal Khan, accused him of speaking against Islam and the religion’s sacred figures, said the suspect’s mother, Parveen Javed.
“We were at home when Bilal and some other Muslims came and told us that Farhan had committed blasphemy,” Javed told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. “I pleaded with them to forgive him keeping in mind his mental state, but they did not listen to me and called the police, which arrested him.”
Javed, widowed six years ago and mother of three children in Chak 134-9/L village, said Farhan Masih’s mental health started deteriorating after his father’s death. His younger sister, Anum, said that his mental condition was known to everyone in the village.
Pakistan ranked eighth on Open Doors’ 2025 World Watch List of the most difficult places to be a Christian.
Read full story.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written and originally published by Morning Star News.
