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Engineer Muhammad Ali Mirza, a Pakistani cleric and YouTuber, was arrested after his remarks sparked controversy and complaints from religious groups.
Muhammad Ali Mirza is widely known for his blunt lectures on religion and society. (Image Credit: X)
Pakistani cleric and YouTuber Engineer Muhammad Ali Mirza was arrested under the country’s preventive detention law after his alleged remarks about Prophet Muhammad went viral and triggered complaints from religious groups.
Authorities said, as per Dawn, that Muhammad Ali Mirza, who commands more than 3.1 million followers on YouTube, was detained for 30 days under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) ordinance and later shifted to jail. The arrest followed a petition by a religious group seeking legal action against him but Muhammad Ali Mirza’s supporters argued that his words were quoted in reference to another community’s terminology and misrepresented.
Muhammad Ali Mirza is widely known for his blunt lectures on religion and society, delivered via his YouTube channel. His outspoken views have repeatedly stirred controversy in Pakistan’s deeply conservative religious landscape and he has survived at least four assassination attempts, it was reported.
This is not the first time Muhammad Ali Mirza has faced legal or social backlash as in 2023, a blasphemy case under Section 295C alleged he insulted Prophet Muhammad and downplayed Pakistan’s ruling on Ahmadis. In 2020, he was arrested by Jhelum police for derogatory remarks against religious figures. In 2021, he survived an assassination attempt at a religious academy.
He has clashed repeatedly with prominent clerics such as Mufti Tariq Masood and Mufti Hanif Qureshi, with debates often ending in public acrimony.
Reacting to the arrest, Lahore-based lawyer J Sajjal Shaheedi said it was less about public order and more about suppressing dissent.
“The arrest of Engineer Muhammad Ali Mirza is not about public order. It is about silencing independent voices who dare to question sectarian clergy… Meanwhile, violent mobs like TLP are coddled, unbanned, and quietly paid off,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
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