The newly installed archbishop of Lahore visited the family of a young Catholic man who died in police custody, as authorities opened a homicide case and issued arrest warrants against officers involved.
Archbishop Khalid Rehmat went to the home of Iftkhar Masihi, who was found dead inside a police station in Lahore’s Kahna neighborhood on March 26.
According to Fides News Agency, the prelate expressed closeness and solidarity with all the faithful who suffer and experience violence and made the visit as a sign of empathy and affection for the grieving family.
Masihi was found hanged inside the police station in an industrial area, but the circumstances of his death remain unclear, raising concerns about detainee safety and police conduct.
Lahore Deputy Inspector General Faisal Kamran, who is leading the investigation, ordered the case filed under Article 302 of Pakistan’s Penal Code, which covers homicide. Authorities have issued arrest warrants for police officers involved.
The death has provoked outrage among Christians across Pakistan and intensified concern over “the responsibility of law enforcement and the safety of Pakistani citizens belonging to religious minorities,” the Fides report said.
Rehmat’s visit signals an early pastoral approach centered on presence among those in distress. At his installation on March 28, he recalled the words of Saint Óscar Romero that “a bishop is not an administrator or a mere official, but a servant of God, a pastor, a brother, and a companion who walks with the people and understands the signs of the times in the light of faith.”
“Ministry is not for power, but for service: I am here not to be served, but to serve,” he said, adding that his ministry “does not consist in avoiding the Cross, but in bearing it with love.”
He also pointed to divisions in society and the Church, saying, “Our world, our society, our families, and the Church sometimes face divisions, but God’s dream is always unity.”
He added that “my first responsibility is to serve unity: to unite rich and poor, young and old, and people of different cultures, because the Church does not belong to us, but to Christ, who unites everyone.”
With Easter approaching, he said, “Christ, through his sacrifice, unites us and saves us.”
