RoP New }: Pakistani Pastor Dies Days After Acquittal in Blasphemy Case

[duluxe]

After spending 13 years behind bars for a crime he had always denied, Pastor Zafar Bhatti finally walked free, only to die three days later. His death has cast a harsh light on Pakistan’s blasphemy laws and the grim conditions of its prisons.


Bhatti, 62, the founder of Jesus World Mission Church in Rawalpindi, died of cardiac arrest on Oct. 5 at his home in Punjab province. He had been released on Oct. 2 after the Lahore High Court’s Rawalpindi bench overturned his blasphemy conviction.


The pastor, who had no children, leaves behind his wife, who became bedridden during his long imprisonment.


Bhatti was arrested in July 2012 after a Muslim cleric accused him of sending text messages allegedly defaming the mother of Prophet Muhammad — charges he repeatedly denied. Reports from that time suggested he was tortured in custody to extract a confession.


In 2017, a court sentenced Bhatti to life imprisonment. His appeal was rejected in 2021, and the following year, the punishment was increased to the death penalty before his eventual acquittal earlier this month.


During his incarceration, Bhatti’s health deteriorated severely. Once in good health, he later developed diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and vision problems, suffering multiple heart attacks between 2019 and 2020. His lawyer stated that inadequate medical care in prison worsened his condition, noting that specialized treatment was not available to inmates.


“Despite all his suffering, he never gave up on seeking justice,” his lawyer said, describing Bhatti as a victim of systemic neglect. He added that the pastor’s wrongful imprisonment has left little hope for any compensation or redress.


According to the National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP), at least 17 Christians, including six women and 23 Muslims, were accused under Pakistan’s blasphemy laws in 2024, most of them in Punjab province.


Bhatti did not enter prison with diabetes, heart disease, or the wounds that later covered his body. Years of torture, neglect, and psychological trauma inside the jail led to his illnesses. Denied proper medical attention even as his health crumbled, he became another casualty of a prison system where human dignity often dies long before the inmate does.


As the Christian community mourns his loss, there remains a call to pray for those still imprisoned under similar charges, to hope for a system that values humanity, and to continue the fight for justice so that Pastor Bhatti’s suffering is not in vain.