EGN NEWS DESK
A Christian mom of 4 kids on Wednesday acquired the demise sentence after a judge convicted her beneath Pakistan’s blasphemy legal guidelines, her lawyer mentioned.
Shagufta Kiran, 40, was convicted beneath Section 295-C of Pakistan’s extensively condemned blasphemy legal guidelines for insulting Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, which carries a compulsory demise sentence. Attorney Rana Abdul Hameed mentioned Additional Session Judge Islamabad Muhammad Afzal Majoka additionally sentenced Kiran to a high-quality of 300,000 rupees ($1,077 USD) after her three-year trial.
She was arrested by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on July 29, 2021, in Islamabad for allegedly sharing blasphemous content material in a WhatsApp group in September 2020. Her husband and two sons had been additionally taken into custody through the raid however had been later launched.
“The criticism in opposition to Kiran was registered by a Muslim named Shiraz Ahmed Farooqi, who alleged that she had shared content material disrespectful of Islam’s prophet,” Hameed advised Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. “However, Kiran has maintained that she has not authored the content material and had forwarded it within the WhatsApp group with out studying it.”
Formerly a nurse, Kiran had joined a number of interfaith WhatsApp teams, the place she proclaimed the gospel and defended her Christian religion. One such group, Pure Discussions, was administered by the complainant, Farooqi, Muhammad Ameer Faisal of India and Muhammad Jaleel of Canada.
Hameed mentioned Kiran was a courageous girl who remained steadfast through the trial.
“I met her after the judge issued the sentence and might verify that she may be very hopeful of a optimistic consequence from the superior courts,” he mentioned. “However, she misses her household so much and desires to reunite with them as quickly as potential.”
The lawyer mentioned he’ll file an attraction after the courtroom points the detailed order. He mentioned the decision didn’t come as a shock as 99 p.c of these charged beneath Section 295-C are convicted by trial courts beneath stress from Islamists.
“If you study all circumstances of 295-C, the trial courts are inclined to convict the accused even when the circumstances in opposition to them are very weak,” Hameed mentioned. “This is because of the stress of the non secular teams and fears of mob violence. If you analyze all circumstances of 295-C, you will notice that each one the convictions of the trial courtroom are overturned by the superior courts.”
Nearly 3,000 individuals have been accused of blasphemy since 1987, in response to the Center for Social Justice (CSJ). The precise scale of abuse of those legal guidelines could also be three to 4 occasions greater, it famous in a report.
It acknowledged that a whole lot of accused had been incarcerated final yr in Pakistan, with 552 detained in prisons in Punjab Province alone. At least 350 individuals remained behind bars as of June, in response to the report, including that 103 new individuals had been accused of blasphemy this yr between January and June.
The report acknowledged that at the very least seven individuals accused of blasphemy have been killed by people or mobs throughout Pakistan since January. A complete of 94 folks accused of blasphemy had been killed in mob assaults between 1994 and 2023.
Pakistan ranked seventh on Open Doors’ 2024 World Watch List of essentially the most troublesome locations to be a Christian, because it was the earlier yr.
© Christian Daily International – Morning Star News
