Rohan Ahmad

Gender: Male

Perpetrator: Pakistan

Religion or Belief: Muslim – Ahmadiyya

Date of Detainment: May/26/2020

Current Status: Not Released

Most Recent Type of Abuse: Detainment

Reason for Persecution: Blasphemy (General) Blasphemy (Religious Figures) Blasphemy (Religious Texts) Distributing Religious Materials Online Activity Religious Activity Religious Belief

Nature of Charges: Blasphemy Conversion Hate Speech

Rohan Ahmad

Extra Bio Info:

Rohan Ahmad is detained for blasphemy.

On May 26, 2020, authorities arrested Ahmad after he was accused of sharing on WhatsApp religious materials perceived as blasphemous. Ahmad was charged with several offenses, including "inciting interfaith hatred" (Sec. 11 Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016), "desecrating the Qur'an" (Sec. 295-B PPC), and "posing as Muslim" (Sec. 298-C PPC).

On June 29, 2021, the trial court added "intending to outrage religious feelings" (Sec. 295-A PPC) and "insulting the Prophet Muhammad" (Sec. 295-C PPC) to the charges against Ahmad.

In October 2023, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention released an opinion on Ahmad's detention, calling for his immediate release.

Related Cases: Malik Usman Ahmad, Hafiz Tariq Shehzad

Sources:

"Pakistan: UN Declares Detention of Three Muslim Men a Violation of International Law" Freedom Now
"Opinion No. 35/2023 concerning Rohan Ahmad, Usman Ahmad and Tariq Ahmad Shehzad (Pakistan)" UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention