The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan on Friday expressed concern over the roughing up of YouTuber Rajab Butt during a court appearance in Karachi earlier this week.

On Monday, Butt was physically assaulted at the Karachi City Court premises during the hearing of his bail plea in a case registered against him for allegedly hurting religious sentiments. Butt’s lawyer, Mian Ali Ashfaq, said on X that “a few lawyers launched a life-threatening attack on him within the court premises” and registered a case against them.

A video of the incident in question had showed Butt, clad in a shirt with the neckline torn open, attempting to move through a crowd surrounding him.

“The HRCP expresses grave concern over the reported physical assault on YouTuber Rajab Butt within the Karachi city court premises and the alleged involvement of members of the legal fraternity,” the HRCP said in a statement today on social media platform X.

“Violence, intimidation and vigilantism — particularly inside courts — undermine the rule of law and the right to due process,” it said.

The commission urged a “prompt, impartial investigation”, accountability for responsible parties and effective measures to ensure the safety of litigants, lawyers and court officials.

The first information report (FIR) of the incident registered on the complaint of Butt’s lawyer, had named Advocate Riaz Ali Solangi, Advocate Abdul Fatah and “another 15-20 lawyers”. Solangi is also the complainant in the case registered against Butt.

Solangi told Dawn on Monday that after obtaining pre-arrest bail on December 20, the YouTuber had uploaded a vlog in which he allegedly used inappropriate language against lawyers in Karachi as well as against him. He claimed Butt was later taken to the Karachi Bar Association committee room after the scuffle, where the YouTuber apologised to the lawyers.

On Tuesday, a group of lawyers had stormed the City Courts police station, manhandled a station house officer (SHO) and then staged a protest sit-in on M.A. Jinnah Road demanding an FIR against Mr Butt.

A day later, police had registered a criminal case against several lawyers, including Solangi, for allegedly assaulting the City Courts SHO after he lodged an FIR against them for assaulting Butt.

Meanwhile, the Punjab Bar Council (PbBC) on Thursday suspended Ashfaq’s practising licence for representing Butt before the court despite a strike called by the local bar.

It said that while defending his client, the advocate made statements against the legal fraternity, which the PbBC described as “serious professional impropriety”. It added Ashfaq’s conduct created an “atmosphere of dispute and disharmony, gravely damaging the reputation, unity and collective integrity of the legal community”.