Amid growing outrage over the sentencing of a Christian woman to death for allegedly committing blasphemy, a Pakistani minister today asked authorities in Punjab province to allow her to plead her case on merit.
Amid growing outrage over the sentencing of a Christian woman to death for allegedly committing blasphemy, a Pakistani minister today asked authorities in Punjab province to allow her to plead her case on merit.
Pakistan's minorities minister Shahbaz Bhatti said the Punjab government should provide 45-year-old Asia Bibi "all possible chances to plead her case on merit".
"Asia Bibi will be given an opportunity to plead her case," Bhatti said.
The minister said he had asked authorities in the province to allow the woman sentenced to death for allegedly committing blasphemy to plead her case on merit.
Human rights groups have expressed concern at the death sentence given to Asia Bibi by the district and sessions court of Nanakana Sahib, which convicted her for allegedly defaming the Prophet Mohammed.
Asia Bibi, a mother of five, is the first woman to be convicted on charges of blasphemy in Pakistan.
Asia Bibi’s case dates back to June 2009, when a complaint of blasphemy was filed against her by an Islamic cleric shortly after she was involved in a row with a group of Muslim women.
She has denied the charge of blasphemy and told investigators that she was being persecuted for her faith.
In his letter to the Punjab government, Bhatti said Asia Bibi and her family should be provided adequate protection.
Bhatti said he has asked authorities in Punjab to submit a detailed report on her case.
The Christian minority in Pakistan often faces discrimination and attacks by radical Islamic groups.
Bhatti said it was the federal government’s constitutional obligation to safeguard the life and property of minorities. The government will not allow anyone to misuse the blasphemy law, he said.
The minister said that in most of cases of alleged blasphemy, the law is being misused to settle personal scores, religious enmities or political vendettas.
The government is taking steps to stop the misuse of the blasphemy law, he added.
Asia Bibi’s husband Ashiq Masih has said he will appeal her death sentence, which needs to be confirmed by the Lahore high court.
No one has been executed as yet for blasphemy in Pakistan though several Christians have been arrested or convicted in recent years on charges of defaming the Prophet Mohammed.
In July, two Christian brothers accused of publishing a blasphemous pamphlet were shot dead outside a court in Punjab.
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