The attack comes after a bail hearing in a blasphemy-related case; The lawyers cite comments made by Butt online.
Rajab Butt is escorted by his lawyers after the attack. Source: El Tribuno Express
KARACHI:
YouTuber Rajab Butt was assaulted by a group of lawyers at the Karachi Municipal Court on Monday after a hearing in a case against him for allegedly insulting Islamic symbols, his lawyers and witnesses said.
The attack took place after Butt appeared before an additional district and sessions judge, who heard his bail application but adjourned the proceedings without any substantive order.
“Today, lawyers and I in my Karachi office were present in the court premises of Karachi Municipal Court during the court appearance with my client Rajab Butt, when some lawyers attacked Rajab Butt with lethal intent in our presence, as a result of which he was injured,” Butt’s lawyer Mian Ali Ashfaq said in a post on X.
“Despite our continued efforts to stop the current beating, it persisted,” he added.
آج مجورٹ և میں ھماری موجودگی میں چند وکلا نے رجب بٹ پر جان لیوا حملہ کیا جس سے وہ زخمی ھو گیا اور اسکے ساتھ مسلسل زدورکوبی کو منع کرنے کے باجود مسلسل جاری رھا-…
—Mian Ali Ashfaq (@MianAliAshfaq) December 29, 2025
According to people present in court, immediately after the hearing there was an exchange of words between Butt and several lawyers in court. The argument led to a fight, after which Butt was beaten.
Read: Lahore court grants provisional bail to Rajab Butt and Nadeem Mubarak
His defense lawyers tried to intervene and stop the attack. Butt was later escorted out of the city court.
Attorneys involved in the standoff linked it to comments Butt allegedly made online after an earlier court appearance.
“Rajab had said that the person who registered the case against me does not look like a lawyer,” they said. They also said Butt had asked for a case to be registered against him.
Some lawyers said they accepted Butt’s promise that he “will not commit such an act again.”
Others warned: “This is what will happen to anyone who speaks out against lawyers.”
Police were not immediately available to comment on whether any action had been taken following the assault.
The bail application is scheduled to be heard again on January 13.
The case registered against Butt at Haidri police station is still under investigation.
Case history
Rajab Butt has been under scrutiny for blasphemy-related allegations since earlier this year after launching a perfume branded “295”, a reference to Section 295 of Pakistan’s blasphemy law.
The launch sparked backlash and accusations that the brand was flouting the law.
An FIR was later registered against him under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act and Section 295-A of the Pakistan Penal Code, which deals with insult to religious beliefs.
In March 2025, Butt posted an apology video from Masjid-e-Haram in Mecca while performing Umrah. He said he had not done anything intentionally and asked people to “cleanse their hearts” towards him.
He said the video linked to the controversy had been misinterpreted, claimed a word had been removed and announced the suspension of the perfume. He also appealed to religious scholars, the Punjab government and the Pakistan Army to reconsider the charges.
The FIR was lodged by Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan leader Haider Ali Shah Gillani. If convicted, Butt could face up to 10 years in prison on the charges.
