A Christian man, Humayun Faisal Masih, who is reportedly psychologically disturbed or a drug addict, was taken by some citizens to the Gulshan-e-Ravi police station in Lahore on Monday, where he was arrested for allegedly burning pages of a Quran. After his arrest, a vociferous mob approached the police station and demanded that the suspect be handed over to them. Upon the police’s refusal, the enraged mob turned to a nearby church and vandalised it. Due to the timely intervention of the police, there have been no reported casualties and the mob’s plan to burn Saint Joseph’s Church was successfully thwarted. Forty suspects have been arrested for vandalising the church under the Anti-Terrorism Act. The authorities seem to finally be aware of the security concerns of minorities after the fallout of the Youhanabad blasts in two churches, which killed several members of the Christian community. Although there is a history of lynching and mob justice over alleged cases of blasphemy, the attacks on Christians seem to have escalated this year. After the Youhanabad incident, there have been several attacks on predominantly Christian residential areas and churches. A few members of the Christian community also retaliated after the Youhanabad incident, which was unusual for the normally peaceful community but not unsurprising after years of persecution. The blasphemy law in particular has become a vehicle for the persecution of minorities, but also Muslims. It is often misused and innocent people are accused of committing blasphemy by others with vested interests. The authorities need to take notice of the misuse of the blasphemy law and, at the very least, amend it to safeguard people against false accusation, requiring substantial evidence to indict suspects and making sure they do not fall prey to mob vigilantism, that is of course if the law cannot be repealed altogether. Politicians who have raised this issue in the past have either been silenced or murdered, such as former Governor Punjab Salmaan Taseer and Federal Minister for Minorities Shahbaz Bhatti. The mischief surrounding this law seems to be unstoppable and innocent citizens have increasingly become its victims. It is the responsibility of the state to provide a safe environment to its minorities and promote a culture of tolerance and mutual respect amongst various communities. The growing attacks on religious minorities in Pakistan reflect the inability of the state to protect its most marginalised citizens. Yet this growing culture of mob mentality and people’s tendency to take the law into their own hands is indicative of a larger issue. The desperation and anger caused by poverty and the justice system’s inability to cater to the poor and downtrodden seems to be feeding the growing tendency of knee-jerk reactions in society. The government should heed the signs to strengthen Pakistan’s justice system, improve economic conditions and work towards the wellbeing of the deprived classes. *