ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Tuesday unanimously resolved to form a 10-member committee to establish who is behind the blasphemous content being circulated on social media platforms.

The decision came hours after Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ordered the blocking of blasphemous content on social media and instructed that those behind the propagation of such material be swiftly punished.

The Senate already passed a similar resolution last week.

Tuesday’s resolution in the National Assembly was moved jointly by retired Capt Mohammad Safdar and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl’s (JUI-F) Naeema Kishwer Khan.

It called upon the government to immediately take measures to crack down on blasphemy against the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him), which had wounded the sentiments of Muslims across the globe.

Following agreement among all parties in the house, PML-N’s Mian Abdul Mannan read out yet another resolution: “This house may authorise the speaker to constitute a special committee... consisting of at least 10 members from all the parties to investigate and report about the blasphemous material on social media [concerning] the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).”

This was also passed unanimously.

One by one, leaders from nearly all parties paid tribute to Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui of the Islamabad High Court, who took suo motu cognisance of an issue of the utmost importance.

PM orders crackdown on such material being circulated on social media

Lawmakers from across the aisle also criticised dissenting voices such as Asma Jahangir, who had criticised Justice Siddiqui’s observations in the matter. JUI-F’s Jamaluddin even went as far as to dub her “an enemy of the country” for saying that the judge was only fit to be a prayer leader at a mosque.

Deputy Speaker Murtaza Javed Abbasi was of the view that the committee on information and broadcasting could have taken up the matter of blasphemous content on social media websites, but Naeema Kishwer pointed out that the matter lay under the purview of the house committees on information technology and interior.

PML-N’s Ghulam Mohammad Lali noted that police and security agencies were usually able to nab people who circulated hate material or inappropriate content from their phones or other devices. He said that if the perpetrators were inside the country, they could be easily tracked down and brought to justice.

A similar resolution — moved by Khadija Umer, Vickas Hassan Mokal and Amer Sultan Cheema of the PML-Q — was approved unanimously by the Punjab Assembly on Tuesday.

PM’s statement

Meanwhile, a statement issued by the PM Office on Tuesday said the prime minister had directed Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan to take all necessary measures to ensure that the objectionable material was blocked.

The PM also asked the Foreign Office to contact social media websites and make every possible effort to ensure the removal of all such objectionable content.

The matter of blasphemous social media content became a burning issue after IHC Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui took suo motu notice of the matter and warned he would summon the prime minister, if necessary, to prod the government into acting against the sacrilegious material being circulated online.

The statement reflects this, quoting the PM as saying: “The matter is currently sub judice and all remedial measures will be taken in line with the court’s guidelines.”

“The blasphemous content [being circulated] on social media is a dastardly attempt to toy with the sentiments of Muslims,” the statement quoted the PM as saying, adding: “Effective measures must be taken to remove and block such material immediately.”

However, the prime minister also cautioned against the application of the blasphemy charge on innocent persons, saying: “An example should be made of those who tried to use the blasphemy law for their personal interests”.

The interior minister had said last week that the government was reaching out to social media companies such as Facebook to remove or block blasphemous content from being viewed in Pakistan.

Published in Dawn, March 15th, 2017