ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s religion ministry has officially declared Mar. 15, 2025, as the “Day of Protection of the Sanctity of Prophethood” to address rising incidents of blasphemy and sacrilegious content online, state-run media reported on Monday.

Every year on Mar. 15 the world commemorates the “International Day to Combat Islamophobia” to stress the right to freedom of religion and belief and condemn incidents of blasphemy. Mar. 15 also marks the day when a gunman entered two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, killing 51 people and injuring 40 others in a hate crime against Muslims.

“The Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony has officially declared March 15, 2025, as the Day of Protection of the Sanctity of Prophethood (Yum-e-Tahaffuz-e-Namoos-e-Risalat Peace Be Upon Him),” the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported on Sunday. 

As per the report, religious affairs ministry’s spokesperson Muhammad Umar Butt said the initiative will curb rising incidents of blasphemy and sacrilegious content on social media. Butt said the ministry has issued directives to provincial secretaries of the religious affairs and Auqaf departments in all four provinces, Islamabad, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan to launch an awareness campaign against blasphemous content. 

He said the ministry has also urged prominent religious scholars to devise a comprehensive strategy for public awareness against blasphemous content.

Blasphemy, punishable by death in Muslim-majority Pakistan is an incendiary charge, where even unsubstantiated accusations can incite public outrage and lead to lynchings. Human rights groups say Pakistan’s blasphemy laws are often misused to settle personal scores.

Pakistan has seen a sharp rise in the prosecution of “online blasphemy” cases recently, with private groups accusing hundreds of young individuals of blasphemy, according to AFP.

A report published by the government-run National Commission for Human Rights in October last year said there were 767 people, mostly young men, in jail awaiting trial over blasphemy allegations.

Meanwhile, Sardar Muhammad Yousaf of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) party assumed charge as the new Minister of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, according to a statement from the religion ministry. 

“Federal Minister Sardar Muhammad Yousuf assumed the portfolio of the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony,” the ministry said. “He was given a detailed briefing on the Ministry of Religious Affairs, the ministry’s subordinate institutions and Hajj preparations.”

Yousaf said prioritizing the welfare of pilgrims and visitors was essential, emphasizing that all necessary steps would be taken to address their issues and improve Hajj facilities.