Punjab Inspector General (IG), Dr Usman Anwar, announced on Monday that the police have uncovered a “network of hostile intelligence agencies” allegedly involved in the recent incidents of blasphemy across the country. The violence, which took place on August 16, involved the ransacking and torching of nearly two dozen churches, attacks on the residences of Christian community members, and the office of the local assistant commissioner in Jaranwala. The estimated damages amounted to Rs29.1 million for the churches and Rs38.5 million for the affected houses.
Local sources indicate that the violence erupted after locals alleged finding desecrated pages of the Holy Quran near the house of two Christian brothers in Cinema Chowk, Jaranwala. In an attempt to address the situation, the Punjab police interrogated over 300 people, leading to the arrest of 180 individuals based on evidence.
During a press conference in Lahore today, the Punjab police chief assured the public that no innocent person would be falsely implicated for the sake of “number scoring”. He also mentioned that the culprits behind the recent blasphemy incidents in Sargodha and Faisalabad had been apprehended. Anwar revealed that a “network of hostile intelligence agencies” had been uncovered, suggesting a conspiracy to create a diversion from communal clashes in India’s Manipur state.
Unlike the Indian state’s response, Pakistani officials, civil society, and scholars stood in support of the Christian victims and voiced their opposition against the injustice. According to Anwar, two more incidents of blasphemy were reported in Punjab after the Jaranwala violence, and the culprits were apprehended using modern technological methods. He emphasized the collaboration between peace committees, Muslims, law enforcement, and intelligence agencies in unveiling this network of hostile intelligence agencies.
Anwar asserted that the motive was to deviate attention from the Manipur violence, pointing to a printout of a European Union motion discussing the issue. He commended the efforts of the Punjab police in connecting the links and preventing the situation from escalating. The cyber evaluation conducted by the regional police officer revealed the suspects’ links to a hostile intelligence agency. The police chief expressed confidence that such incidents would not reoccur, as the network has been dismantled, stating that Pakistan would not become the scapegoat for the injustice across the border.