A terrorism court in Pakistan has sentenced a Muslim man to death for posting material on a messaging system classified as “blasphemous” (insulting Islam).
In addition to a Peshawar court decision requiring the death penalty by hanging under the Anti-Terror Law, Syed Muhammad Zeeshan, who lives in Mardan (NW), was sentenced to 23 years in prison and fined Rs 1,200,000 (4,300 US dollars) under the cybercrime article. Law.
The accused has the right to appeal.
The case began after Muhammad Saeed, a resident of Talagaang, in the Punjab province, filed a complaint with the Federal Investigation Agency two years ago accusing Zeeshan of posting “blasphemous” content in a WhatsApp group. Agence France Presse quotes Saeed Ibrar Hussain’s lawyer.
The lawyer added that the investigating agency then reviewed the content posted on the mobile phone, and this disclosure proves his “guilty”.
Blasphemy is a very sensitive topic in Pakistan. Anyone accused of insulting Islam faces the death penalty, although such a sentence has not yet been handed down.
Although in many cases Muslims blame other Muslims, human rights activists complain that this controversial law is often used for personal revenge, especially against Christian minorities.
The National Justice and Peace Commission, a human rights and legal aid group in Pakistan, has confirmed that 774 Muslims and 760 people from various religious minorities have been accused of blasphemy over the past 20 years.
Source: AFP
