A Pakistani court sentenced a woman to life imprisonment after convicting her of desecrating pages from the Islamic holy book, a prosecutor confirmed on Friday (March 22).
Under Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, individuals found guilty of showing disrespect towards religion or religious figures may face the death penalty. While no executions have been carried out for blasphemy thus far, mere allegations have been known to incite violent riots.
Government prosecutor Mohazib Awais disclosed that Aasiya Bibi, arrested in 2021, was charged with blasphemy following accusations from local residents alleging that she had burned pages of the Quran, leading to her arrest. Awais mentioned that the judge pronounced the verdict on Wednesday (March 20) in Lahore, a city located in eastern Pakistan. Bibi, who retains the right to appeal, reportedly denied the charge throughout her trial.
It is worth noting that a Christian woman bearing the same name was acquitted of blasphemy in 2019 after spending eight years on death row in Pakistan. Subsequently, she relocated to Canada to evade death threats from Islamic extremists following her release.
The case on Wednesday involved a different woman.
Both domestic and international human rights organizations assert that blasphemy accusations are often employed as a means of settling personal scores against religious minorities and instilling fear.
In a separate incident in March, a different court in Gujranwala, located in Punjab province, found two teenagers guilty of insulting Prophet Muhammad. One of them was sentenced to death, while the other received a life sentence.
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