On the 6th of July, a twenty-nine-year-old Christian bicycle mechanic named Ashfaq Masih was condemned to death on false charges of blasphemy. Ashfaq Masih is a resident of Green Town, Lahore, Pakistan. He is married and has one daughter.

He was arrested in 2017 when an Islamic religious scholar came to his shop to get his bicycle repaired. After repairing the bicycle, Ashfaq asked the Islamic scholar to settle the account. The man refused to pay, stating that his bicycle should be fixed free of charge because he was an Islamic scholar.

Ashfaq replied that he was a poor Christian man and that working in the shop was his only source of income. He asked again to be paid for the bicycle he had repaired. The Islamic scholar became angry and started shouting. He accused Ashfaq Masih of committing blasphemy against Islam.

Later, a huge angry mob gathered and tried to harm Ashfaq. The police arrived and arrested him. Ashfaq has already spent five years in prison as the court always deferred his case. Finally, on the 6th of July  2022, the court condemned Ashfaq Masih to death.

A photo shared by Hector Aleem shows the Christian man saying goodbye to his family after being sentenced to death.

Christian man saying goodbye to his family after being sentenced to death in Pakistan. Source: Facebook/Stop Persecution of Christians

Source: Facebook/Stop Persecution of Christians