Asia Bibi case: Court reserves verdict

ISLAMABAD : Pakistan's Supreme Court on Monday reserved its judgement on the final appeal against the execution of Asia Bibi, a Christian woman sentenced to death for blasphemy.

A special three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Saqib Nisar heard Asia Bibi's appeal, which was filed in 2014.

While reserving the bench’s verdict, the Chief Justice cautioned the media against discussing the case. No date was set by the court for announcing the verdict on the appeal.

Asia Bibi's lawyer Saiful Mulook told the bench that the June 14, 2009 incident of alleged blasphemy was reported on June 19. A case was filed against her by an imam in Katanwala village of Nankana Sahib, according to which Asia Bibi had confessed to committing blasphemy, he said.

He said no permission to file the FIR was taken from the district coordination officer or the district police chief, as required under legal provisions.

Asia Bibi and two Muslim women had a heated exchange, the lawyer told the court. The reason behind it was that the women had refused to drink water from the same utensil as Asia. The statements of the Muslim women, Asma and Isma, had been contradictory, the lawyer added.

The investigation was faulty and grounded in malicious intent. In such a situation, the legal provision related to blasphemy is inapplicable, the lawyer argued. The Chief Justice wondered whether the assistant superintendent police's probe could be relied upon, to which the lawyer replied that police had wrongfully registered the case.