Islamabad, October 8, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The family of a 15-year-old Christian boy allegedly kidnapped in Pakistan’s Punjab province has appealed for his safe return, claiming that he was pressured to convert to Islam while working at a local factory.
The boy, identified as Sagar Masih, reportedly came from a low-income family and had taken up factory work to help support his family financially.
According to his parents, Sagar’s co-workers pressured him to follow Muslim prayer practices and convert to Islam. The family also alleged that he was offered rewards at times for adopting the practices.
The family further claimed that the factory listed his name as “Sagar Muhammad” instead of Sagar Masih.
“We only want our child. We want our son returned to us and kept safe. We do not want anything else,” Sagar’s father, Babar, was quoted as saying by the UK-based Christian advocacy group Centre for Legal Aid, Assistance and Settlement (CLAAS-UK).
According to reports cited by PJ Media, the family alleged that Sagar was made to follow Muslim prayer practices five times a day before his reported conversion.
Family members said they searched for him for several days before coming across a video showing Sagar with religious clerics and other people. They subsequently approached the police seeking his return and an explanation regarding the alleged conversion.
The family claimed police told them that Sagar had already converted to Islam and that further action could only be taken through the courts.
Sagar’s father also alleged that police provided contradictory information about the process for bringing his son home. Family members claimed that Sagar told officials he wanted to return to his family but was subsequently pressured to remain away from his relatives.
CLAAS-UK Director Nasir Saeed expressed concern over the boy’s safety and welfare, stressing that Sagar, being 15, should first be treated as a child requiring protection.
“We are deeply concerned for Sagar’s safety and welfare. He is only 15 years old and must first and foremost be treated as a child in need of protection,” Saeed said.
He added that while freedom of religion is a fundamental right, religious freedom must be genuinely voluntary and should not involve coercion, threats, inducements or exploitation of a child’s poverty and vulnerability.
The allegations regarding Sagar’s circumstances and conversion have not been independently established.
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