Pakistan’s Penal
Code Section 295, better known as the Blasphemy Law, was first introduced to a
pre-partition India in 1860. Back then, the law was applicable to every
religion and any person with a maximum punishment up to two years with bail.
And any disturbance of any religious gathering was also in violation of the
law. There have been an estimated 1,274 people charged under the blasphemy laws
between 1986 till 2010 according to reports. 1927: • There was an amendment
made after the loss of a controversial case defended by India’s leading lawyer
M.A. Jinnah. The Indian legislature cautioned against using the words
“intentional outrage” or “attempted outrage” for their vagueness and instead
chose to use words such as “deliberate” or “malicious intent.” REFERENCE:
High-profile blasphemy cases in the last 63 years DAWN.COM
| 8th December, 2010 http://dawn.com/2010/12/08/high-profile-blasphemy-cases-in-the-last-63-years/
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There is no punishment for Blasphemy in Islam, however, somewhere in the history, the bootlickers wrote the blasphemy laws to please the dictators and monarchs, and the ordinary men and women in the market today rely on those made up books... instead of Quran.
There is no punishment for Blasphemy in Islam, however, somewhere in the history, the bootlickers wrote the blasphemy laws to please the dictators and monarchs, and the ordinary men and women in the market today rely on those made up books... instead of Quran.
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Blasphemy Law & Violence - 4
Blasphemy Law & Violence - 4 (Reporter - Dawn News Jan 2011)
LAHORE, May 28: An under-trial blasphemy accused, who was attacked and
wounded by a policeman on May 25, died in the Lahore General Hospital on
Friday.
Labourer Samuel Masih (29) of Basti Saidan Shah had been accused of
blasphemy in August 2003. The accused was caught by prayer leader Chaudhry
Yaqoob of the Jinnah Bagh.
The prayer leader had alleged that the labourer had littered the walls of
a religious institute in the garden, inscribed with some Quranic verses.
Together with the prayer leader, dozens of people had allegedly tortured the
accused before handing him over to the police.
A blasphemy case under Section 295 of PPC was registered against the
accused with Civil Lines police and he was sent to the Kot Lakhpat jail. The
accused fell ill there and doctors diagnosed him with TB in prison hospital.
He was shifted to the Gulab Devi Hospital. Two policemen were deployed on
his guard duty. One of the policemen, Faryad Ali, on May 25 allegedly attacked
him in his head with a hammer.
The staff caught the policeman and immediately shifted the blasphemy
accused to the General Hospital where he died on Friday. The body was removed
to the city mortuary for autopsy.
A case already registered against the accused policeman was turned into a
murder case. He had already been sent to jail. The accused policeman is
reported to have no regret for his act and believes that it will earn him
paradise.
Condemning the killing, All Pakistan Minorities Alliance chairman Shahbaz
Bhatti called upon the government to repeal the blasphemy law. "This is
not the first example of the misuse of the law." He said his organization
was going to file a petition against a senior police official and prison
hierarchy for their negligence, which had resulted in the murder.
Already a writ petition filed by advocate Pervaiz Chaudhry in the LHC had
pleaded for an action against the police hierarchy. The judge had directed the
city police chief and the police concerned to produce relevant record before
him on Monday, the lawyer said.
He alleged the
police were attempting to give favour to their colleague by distorting evidence
against him. "The accused policeman has been sent to jail without completion
of investigation." REFERENCE: LAHORE: Blasphemy accused dies By Our
Reporter 29 May 2004 Saturday 09 Rabi-us-Saani 1425 http://archives.dawn.com/2004/05/29/local25.htm
Blasphemy Law & Violence - 3
Blasphemy Law & Violence - 3 (Reporter - Dawn News Jan 2011)
Court convicts imam and son for blasphemy AFP | 11th January, 2011
MULTAN: A Pakistan court has jailed a Muslim prayer leader and his 20-year-old
son for life on controversial blasphemy charges http://dawn.com/2011/01/09/more-than-20000-protest-blasphemy-law-change-police/
in the rural centre of the country, court officials said Tuesday. The case
follows the killing of Punjab provincial governor Salman Taseer by his
bodyguard last Tuesday, after the outspoken politician called for reform of the
law that was recently used to sentence a Christian woman http://dawn.com/2010/11/12/christian-woman-sentenced-to-death-in-blasphemy-case-2/
to death. Mohammad Shafi, 45, and his son Mohammad Aslam, 20, were arrested in
April last year for removing a poster outside their grocery shop advertising an
Islamic event in a nearby village which allegedly contained Quranic verses.
Judge Mohammad Ayub, heading an anti-terrorism court in the central
Pakistani town of Muzaffargarh, handed down a life sentence to the pair on
Monday, his assistant Faisal Karim told AFP by telephone. The prosecution
alleged organisers of the event, which commemorated the anniversary of the
Prophet Mohammad’s birth, said the pair had “pulled the poster down, tore it
and trampled it under their feet,” Karim said. “The judge sentenced them to
life imprisonment on charges of blasphemy and ordered them to pay a fine of
200,000 rupees ($2,350) each,” he said. Liberal politicians and human rights
activists in Pakistan say the blasphemy law, which carries the death penalty
for the worst offences, is sometimes used to settle personal scores and encourages
extremism.
Defence counsel Arif Gurmani vowed to challenge the verdict in the high
court because “it has been given in haste” and was the result of inter-faith
rivalries, he said. “Both are Muslims. The case is the result of differences
between Deobandi and Barelvi sects of Sunni Muslims,” he said. “Shafi is a
practising Muslim, he is the imam of a mosque and he had recently returned from
a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia…. I am defending them because I am convinced they
are not guilty of blasphemy,” he said. Nobody has been executed in Pakistan for
blasphemy and those given the death penalty have so far had their sentences http://dawn.com/2010/12/12/doctor-arrested-for-blasphemy-police/
overturned or commuted on appeal.
Since Taseer’s assassination, right-wing religious clerics have heaped
praise on his killer and stoked controversy over reform of the law. The
government has said it has no plan to reform the law. http://dawn.com/2010/12/30/govt-appeases-religious-parties-on-blasphemy-law/
The controversy was sparked when former information minister Sherry Rehman
tabled a private member’s bill in November, seeking to abolish the death
penalty for blasphemy. REFERENCE: Court convicts imam and son for blasphemy AFP
| 11th January, 2011 http://dawn.com/2011/01/11/court-convicts-imam-and-son-for-blasphemy/
Blasphemy Law & Violence - 2
Blasphemy Law & Violence - 2 (Reporter - Dawn News Jan 2011)
Court jails imam and son for blasphemy 12th January, 2011 MULTAN, Jan 11:A
court has jailed a prayer leader and his 20-year-old son for life on blasphemy
charges in the rural heartland of the country, court officials said on Tuesday.
The case follows the assassination of Punjab governor Salman Taseer by his
bodyguard last week, after he called for reform of the blasphemy law under
which a Christian woman was sentenced to death.
Mohammad Shafi, 45, and his son Mohammad Aslam, 20, were arrested in
April last year for removing a poster outside their grocery shop promoting a
religious event in a nearby village. The poster allegedly carried Quranic
verses.
Judge Mohammad Ayub, heading an anti-terrorism court in Muzaffargarh,
handed down a life sentence to the pair on Monday, his assistant Faisal Karim
said by telephone.
According to the prosecution, the organisers of the event marking the
birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said the pair had “pulled the
poster down, tore it and trampled it under their feet,” Mr Karim said.
“The judge sentenced them to life imprisonment on charges of blasphemy
and ordered them to pay a fine of Rs200,000 each,” he said.
Defence counsel Arif Gurmani vowed to challenge the verdict in the high
court because “it has been given in haste” and was the result of inter-sect
rivalries, he said.
“Both are Muslims.
The case is the result of differences between Deobandi and Barelvi sects of
Sunni Muslims,” he said. “Shafi is a practising Muslim, he is the imam of a
mosque and he had recently returned from a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia… I am
defending them because I am convinced they are not guilty of blasphemy,” he
said. Nobody has been executed in Pakistan for blasphemy and those given the
death penalty have so far had their sentences overturned or commuted on
appeal.—AFP REFERENCE: Court jails imam and son for blasphemy 12th January,
2011 http://dawn.com/2011/01/12/court-jails-imam-and-son-for-blasphemy/
Blasphemy Law & Violence - 1
Blasphemy Law & Violence - 1 (Reporter - Dawn News Jan 2011)
Imam lynched by mob for ‘blasphemy’ By Majeed Gill June 16, 2006 Friday
Jumadi-ul-Awwal 19, 1427 BAHAWALPUR, June 15: A mosque Imam was killed while a
religious leader sustained critical injuries in violence caused reportedly by
sectarian tension between two Sunni sects in Choonawala Mandi near Hasilpur,
about 90km from here, on Thursday. According to reports reaching here, the trouble
started when Hafiz Qamar Javed, prayer leader at local Masjid Ahl-e-Hadith,
burnt some trash near his mosque. The fire attracted neighbours, including
people from the rival sect, who propagated that Javed was burning pages from
Quran.
Within no time a huge mob turned up at the scene and attacked Javed. When
Ahl-e-Hadith’s local leader Master Muhammad Sadiq came to his rescue, he was
also beaten up severely. The assailants left the scene when the two fell
unconscious. Police rushed to the scene after getting information. In a hurry,
a police vehicle hit and injured Muhammad Nadeem (13). The mob then damaged the
van and thrashed ASI Muhammad Nawaz, who also sustained injuries.
Later, the Hasilpur DSP and tehsil nazim reached Choonawala and managed
to disperse the mob. The injured were rushed to the Bahawal Victoria Hospital,
Bahawalpur, where Hafiz Qamar Javed succumbed to injuries while Master Muhammad
Sadiq was in precarious condition.
Following an appeal, Choonawala traders’ president, shopkeepers pulled
down their shutters to protest the ‘blasphemous act’.
Meanwhile, it was learnt that a case under the Blasphemy Act had been
registered against deceased Hafiz Qamar Javed and injured Muhammad Sadiq while
no case was registered against the assailants.
DPO Arif Nawaz was not available for comments. STRIKE: Shopkeepers of
Dubai and Al-Karim plazas pulled down their shutters to protest the
registration of cases against some traders by Kotwali police. The police had
registered the cases on the report of Wasim Azam who had accused the traders of
assaulting them. REFERENCE: Imam lynched by mob for ‘blasphemy’ By Majeed Gill
June 16, 2006 Friday Jumadi-ul-Awwal 19, 1427 http://archives.dawn.com/2006/06/16/nat10.htm
Muslims Condemn Blasphemy Charges against Christian teen In Paksitan
Blasphemy has become a tool of harassment to a few who have nothing better to do than create chaos. We ask the people of Pakistan to seriously debate the blasphemy laws. Islam is about free will and as Muslims we need to stand against any oppression towards any human being following in the footsteps of the prophet.
Full article at:
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Blasphemy laws go against Islam
http://blasphemylaws.blogspot.com/2012/04/blasphemy-laws-go-against-islam.html
[6:68] If you see those who mock our revelations, you shall
avoid them until they delve into another subject. If the devil causes you to
forget, then, as soon as you remember, do not sit with such evil people.
# # #
Blasphemy laws have no basis in the Quran, God is about justice and mercy, and not cruelty and tyranny. Those who claim to defend the dignity of God, Prophet, Quran, and Islam really do not have faith in the four. They are afraid God, the Prophet, the Quran, and Islam will disappear from the face of the earth without their protection. They are wrong! We are bloody mortal beings here today and gone tomorrow, whereas God, Prophet, Quran, and Islam have been around and will always be there.
There should be no punishment for Blasphemy, it is not in the Quran and it was not practiced by the prophet. God (Quran) says the dearest human to him is one who forgives, and Prophet practiced it by praying for those who cursed him. He could have smashed those miscreants in Taif, but he chose to pray. As followers, we are supposed to pray and not punish.
Blasphemy Laws are not God's laws, they are the tools of oppression by the tyrants to force obedience from others, it goes against the principle of the Quran - there is no compulsion.
Insecure men do not have the confidence in themselves to dialogue and resolve the conflicts, nor do they have faith in God and his word.
When people disagree with them, they will beat them up or eliminate them with power, screams, deaths, and threats.
Secure men believe in God and the Day of Judgment, and he is the only one who knows what is in our hearts. He says in the Quran, I am closer to you than your jugular vein. Meaning, he knows our thoughts, intentions, and actions on time, as we do.
Secure men discuss things, square the difference through dialogue. Indeed, that is the reason God gave us a tongue to dialogue instead of what the animals are programmed to do.
Who are we to punish then?
It is un-Islamic and cooked up by the tyrants. Unless a few of us start speaking against Blasphemy, the evil vigilantist anti-Islamic practice of insecure men will continue. There is no punishment for Blasphemy.
There should be no punishment for Blasphemy, it is not in the Quran and it was not practiced by the prophet. God (Quran) says the dearest human to him is one who forgives, and Prophet practiced it by praying for those who cursed him. He could have smashed those miscreants in Taif, but he chose to pray. As followers, we are supposed to pray and not punish.
Blasphemy Laws are not God's laws, they are the tools of oppression by the tyrants to force obedience from others, it goes against the principle of the Quran - there is no compulsion.
Insecure men do not have the confidence in themselves to dialogue and resolve the conflicts, nor do they have faith in God and his word.
When people disagree with them, they will beat them up or eliminate them with power, screams, deaths, and threats.
Secure men believe in God and the Day of Judgment, and he is the only one who knows what is in our hearts. He says in the Quran, I am closer to you than your jugular vein. Meaning, he knows our thoughts, intentions, and actions on time, as we do.
Secure men discuss things, square the difference through dialogue. Indeed, that is the reason God gave us a tongue to dialogue instead of what the animals are programmed to do.
Who are we to punish then?
It is un-Islamic and cooked up by the tyrants. Unless a few of us start speaking against Blasphemy, the evil vigilantist anti-Islamic practice of insecure men will continue. There is no punishment for Blasphemy.
Except for the first four caliphs, who were chosen to govern, we have a
bad history of oppression. It is not just us, until 100 years ago with the exception
of the United States; the whole world was run by dictators and kings particularly in Muslim majority nations. Most
nations are moving towards civil societies run by the consensus of the people
and sadly Muslim societies have not been able to free themselves from the shackles put in by the dictator Caliphs and Kings. At least one thing is right about secondary Muslim literature - they called the first four Caliphs Rashidun - the rightly guided ones. Since then we have good, bad, and ugly Muslim rulers.
Look at our history,
we have been prevented from independent inquiry, we are run over by the damned
dictators and kings.
Unfortunately, Muslims do not have the breathing room to be
themselves, they are continuously bonded by one tyrant or the other… We certainly can pray to ask God to help Muslims to be free to govern themselves and not throw them in the mouths
of Mullahs from the dictators. One bad Mubarak goes and the brotherhood is out
there to force their laws on the unwilling people, and now we have another tyrant Sisi, where will it end?
We the Muslims have been reduced to Pavlovian Muslims - we
are too damned conditioned with the laws created by men like dictator Zia ul Haq, intolerant Ibn-e-Wahhab, sneaky Maududi and Banna. We
need to be free and follow the guidance from God.
Prophet Muhammad said I am leaving this book to you - he
did not say, well, I have assigned the interpretation of the book to the Imams,
Kings and the dictators... you don't need to read the Quran any more, just follow the rules made by the dominant partners of God, you will get a free pass on the Day of Judgement. They will take care of you.
Time to start from Zero and follow the Prophet. Pull down the "Great Work" of big-time Imams and not equate their work with the Quran, they have made us cowards and insecure with Blasphemy and Apostasy laws that go against God's will.
Here are verses from the Quran;
[5:57] O you who believe, do not befriend those among the
recipients of previous scripture who mock and ridicule your religion, nor shall
you befriend the disbelievers. You shall reverence GOD if you are really believers.
[18:106] Their just requital is Hell, in return for their
disbelief, and for mocking revelations and My messengers.
My note: Hell and punishment is God's business and not ours. Ours is to forgive and pray for the goodwill.
My note: Hell and punishment is God's business and not ours. Ours is to forgive and pray for the goodwill.
[39:48] The sinful works they had earned will be shown to
them and the very things they used to mock will come back to haunt them.
[45:33] The evils of their works will become evident to
them, and the very things they mocked will come back and haunt them.
Why the Muslim masses ignore the Messenger Muhammad? Who they want to please?
The punishment is delivered by God, not by you or me.
The killing is justified only if people wage war against you.
[5:33] (Asad) It is but a just recompense for those who make war on God and His apostle, [43] and endeavor to spread corruption on earth, that they are being slain in great' numbers, or crucified in great numbers, or have, in l' result of their perverseness, their hands and feet cut off in great numbers, [44] or are being [entirely] banished from [the face of] the earth: such is their ignominy in this world . [45] But in the life to come [yet more] awesome suffering awaits them
43- The term "apostle" is evidently generic in this context. By "making war on God and His apostle" is meant a hostile opposition to, and wilful disregard of, the ethical precepts ordained by God and explained by all His apostles, combined with the conscious endeavor to destroy or undermine other people's belief in God as well
44- In classical Arabic idiom, the "cutting off of one's hands and feet" is often synonymous with "destroying one's power", and it is possible in this sense that the expression has been used here. Alternatively, it might denote "being mutilated", both physically and metaphorically -similar to the (metonymical) use of the expression "being crucified" in the sense of "being tortured". The phrase min khilaf-usually rendered as "from opposite sides"-is derived from the verb khalafahu, "he disagreed with him", or "opposed him", or "acted contrarily to him": consequently, the primary meaning of min khilaf is "in the result of contrariness" or "of perverseness"
43- The term "apostle" is evidently generic in this context. By "making war on God and His apostle" is meant a hostile opposition to, and wilful disregard of, the ethical precepts ordained by God and explained by all His apostles, combined with the conscious endeavor to destroy or undermine other people's belief in God as well
44- In classical Arabic idiom, the "cutting off of one's hands and feet" is often synonymous with "destroying one's power", and it is possible in this sense that the expression has been used here. Alternatively, it might denote "being mutilated", both physically and metaphorically -similar to the (metonymical) use of the expression "being crucified" in the sense of "being tortured". The phrase min khilaf-usually rendered as "from opposite sides"-is derived from the verb khalafahu, "he disagreed with him", or "opposed him", or "acted contrarily to him": consequently, the primary meaning of min khilaf is "in the result of contrariness" or "of perverseness"
The killing is not justified if people evict you. You may
only evict them:
[2:191] You may kill those who wage war against you, and you
may evict them whence they evicted you. Oppression is worse than murder. Do not
fight them at the Sacred Masjid, unless they attack you therein. If they attack
you, you may kill them. This is the just retribution for those disbelievers.
The killing is not justified if people insult the Prophet.
God will take care of it.
[18:106] Their just requital is Hell, in return for their
disbelief, and for mocking My revelations and My messengers
And, these are some of the Quranic wisdoms:
[42:37] They avoid gross sins and vice, and when angered
they forgive
[42:40] Although the just requital for an injustice is an
equivalent retribution, those who pardon and maintain righteousness are
rewarded by GOD. He does not love the unjust.
The Muslim masses need to learn a lot from the Quran. They are shackled by their Ulams and Allamas!
# # #
Mike Ghouse is a Muslim thinker, speaker and writer. Information about him is available in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his current writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com.
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