Pak top court overturns Asia Bibi’s blasphemy death sentence
PROTESTS ERUPT The case had outraged Christians, with Pope Benedict XVI calling for her release
ISLAMABAD : Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Wednesday acquitted Asia Bibi, a Christian woman sentenced to death for blasphemy against Islam nearly eight years ago, sparking protests in several cities and death threats from religious extremists.
Amid great tension and tight security at the apex court, Chief Justice Saqib Nisar read the judgement by a three-judge bench that said: “The judgement of the (Lahore) high court and that of the trial court is reversed.”
The ruling, which cited the Quran, further said Asia’s conviction had been set aside and she should be freed from a jail in Sheikhupura, near Lahore, if she wasn’t wanted in any other case.
Within hours of the court’s order, activists of religious parties came out on the streets, vandalised cars and public property and blocked roads. But Prime Minister Imran Khan delivered a strong rebuke to the hardliners and appealed for clam in a televised address, saying the government would act against anyone breaking the law.
Reports suggested Asia and her family would be flown out of Pakistan to a Western country to ensure their safety. Asia appeared to be in a state of disbelief after the verdict. “I can’t believe what I am hearing, will I go out now?” she told AFP by phone from prison. “I just don’t know what to say, I am very happy, I can’t believe it.”
The 56-page judgement was authored by Nisar, with a separate concurrent opinion from Justice Asif Saeed Khosa. “Tolerance is the basic principle of Islam,” Nisar read from the judgement, noting that religion condemns injustice and oppression.
The head of Tehreek-e-labbaik Pakistan (TLP), Khadim Hussain Rizvi, started a sit-in opposite the Punjab provincial assembly in Lahore with hundreds of supporters. Jamaat-uDawah chief Hafiz Saeed called for protests after Friday prayers.
A TLP leader, in a video circulated on social media, attacked Prime Minister Imran Khan and army chief Gen Qamar Bajwa, calling them non-muslims. He called on supporters to kill the judges who gave the verdict.
In Islamabad, the main entry points at Faizabad and Peshawar Morh were blocked. In Karachi, the highway to Hyderabad was blocked and parts of the city’s main thoroughfare, MA Jinnah Road, were closed. The government imposed Section 144 of CRPC in Punjab and Sindh provinces, prohibiting rallies and carrying of arms.
In his address, Prime Minister Khan said the court’s verdict was according to the Constitution, which is in line with the Quran. He condemned protesters for declaring the judges “wajib ul qatl” (fit to be killed) and the army chief a “non-muslim”. He warned the protestors not to clash with the state. “If you do this, the state will fulfil its responsibility...don’t force us into taking action,” he said.
Asia, a 47-year-old mother of four, was on death row since 2010, when she became the first woman to be sentenced to death by hanging under Pakistan’s draconian blasphemy laws, which critics say are often misused to persecute minorities.