Paul Bhatti, brother of slain Christian minister and human rights activist Shahbaz Bhatti, has warned that Islamic extremist influence in Pakistan has grown sharply since his brother's murder in 2011, leaving religious minorities too fearful to assert their rights. Bhatti made the remarks at the launch of a report on persecuted Christians produced by Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), according to reports.

Shahbaz Bhatti's Legacy and the Silencing of Advocates

Shahbaz Bhatti served as Pakistan's Federal Minister for Minority Affairs beginning in 2008 and was the only Christian in the Cabinet at the time. He publicly supported Christians who were attacked during the 2009 Gojra riots and also backed a Christian woman sentenced to death under Pakistan's blasphemy laws. His outspoken advocacy drew death threats and ultimately cost him his life — he was murdered in 2011.

Paul Bhatti told the ACN event that his brother's killing had a chilling effect across civil society. 'In the years since (Shahbaz Bhatti's) martyrdom, many human rights and religious freedom advocates have fallen silent out of fear that extremists might target them,' he said, as quoted in reports. 'As a result, religious minorities have continued to face persecution, including the misuse of blasphemy laws, abductions, forced conversion and forced marriages.'

Call for British Parliamentary Inquiry

Paul Bhatti used the platform to demand a formal British Parliamentary probe into the treatment of religious minorities globally. He called for the inquiry to be led by either the Foreign Affairs Select Committee or the Joint Committee on Human Rights. 'We urgently need to raise awareness of the reality of persecution of Christians and other religious minorities around the world today,' he added.

Fresh Incident: 35 Christian Families Flee Punjab Village

The concerns raised by Paul Bhatti come against the backdrop of a recent incident in Pakistan's Punjab province. In October 2026, more than 35 Christian families reportedly fled their homes in Gharial Kalan village in Sheikhupura district after a Muslim mob set fire to the house and shop of a Christian man following blasphemy accusations.

The man, identified as Kamran Masih, a 40-year-old father of three who ran a small pharmacy, was arrested by police after local Muslims accused him of sharing a blasphemous video in WhatsApp groups, according to reports citing Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. Dozens of Muslims had assembled outside his shop and home to protest before some members of the crowd set both buildings ablaze.

'As word of Masih's arrest spread, his family and other Christians started fleeing the village, fearing a mob attack,' a source told the publication on condition of anonymity. It remained unclear, according to the report, which specific provisions of Pakistan's blasphemy laws had been invoked against Masih.

Blasphemy Laws Under Scrutiny

Human rights organisations and legal experts have repeatedly criticised Pakistan's blasphemy laws, warning that they are susceptible to misuse in personal feuds and local disputes and have disproportionately affected religious minorities. Critics argue that weak procedural safeguards make it easy to weaponise the laws against vulnerable communities, with Christians, Ahmadis, and Hindus among those most frequently targeted.

The two incidents — the decade-long silencing of rights advocates following Shahbaz Bhatti's murder and the forced displacement of Christian families in Punjab — underscore what rights groups describe as a deepening climate of impunity for religiously motivated violence in Pakistan. International pressure for accountability, including the proposed British Parliamentary inquiry, is expected to grow.