Over 400,000 social media accounts spreading blasphemy in Pakistan: FIA

Islamabad: Over four hundred thousand social media accounts have been exposed for spreading severely blasphemous content in Pakistan.

This has been revealed in a report filed by Cyber Crime wing of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and the investigation conducted by Legal Commission in Rawalpindi Bench of Lahore High Court (LHC).

Meanwhile, Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony in a statement said that highly organized campaigns on social media platforms are being conducted to spread extremely blasphemous material against the most revered figures, including Allah Almighty, Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), the Ahl al-Bayt, Mothers of the Believers, the Companions of the Prophet, the Holy Quran, and the national flag.

It said: “Such offensive content is being shared through images and videos on specific applications and groups”.

The Ministry said the primary objective of this alarming trend is to create chaos in Pakistan, destabilize peace and security, and sow seeds of hatred among different religious communities and sects.

It also added that act of blasphemy is being orchestrated through conspiratorial means, using accounts with names that appear to belong to a particular religion or sect to defame and insult opposing religions or sects.

“Negative and harmful effects of social media on society have become a matter of great concern,” said Ministry of Religious Affairs.

It emphasized the urgent need for awareness among all sections of society to prevent misuse of social media platforms for spreading the derogatory and inappropriate content.