Woman acquitted of blasphemy after two years, falsely implicated by sexual harassers

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Woman acquitted of blasphemy, falsely implicated by sexual harassers

A Lahore district and sessions court has acquitted Fareeda, a woman accused of blasphemy two years ago.

At a hearing last week, the court ordered she be freed immediately if she isn’t wanted in any other case.

Fareeda was accused of tearing and burning pages containing the verses of the Holy Quran in a book titled “Ramzan-ul-Mubarak Ki Ibadat”. A case against her was registered by a man identified as Muhammad Irfan who claimed to be a witness to the crime.

On December 19, 2020, an FIR was registered against Fareeda under the Code of Criminal Procedure.

During the proceedings, the defence contended that Fareeda had been “falsely implicated in the case by the complainant with mala fide and ulterior motives”.

“Irfan and his friend tried to touch my client’s breasts forcibly and accused her of blasphemy when she stopped him. The accused lady took the book in the same condition from the Muqadas Orraq Box,” he said.

On January 6, 2022, the court ruled that the woman was free to go home.

In his verdict, the judicial magistrate remarked that he perused the case property (the book) and found only one page affixed inside the hard cover half torn and slightly burnt. “The front cover page of the book is as safe as it seems to be a new book. Even the internal pages of the book reveal that it is in good condition,” he observed.

“If the accused lady burnt the Holy book for about two to three minutes (claimed by the complainants) it should have been completely burnt but this is not the case.”

The court pointed out that the case has not been thoroughly investigated by the police and investigation officer. A forensic exam of the book wasn’t conducted either.

The judge, subsequently, acquitted Fareeda while extending her the benefit of doubt.

In the verdict, the court quoted a Supreme Court ruling in another blasphemy case: “It is hardly necessary to reiterate that the prosecution is obliged to prove its case against the accused beyond any reasonable doubt and if it fails to do so the accused is entitled to the benefit of doubt… It is better that ten guilty persons be acquitted rather than one innocent person be convicted.”

This rule occupies a pivotal place in Islamic law and is enforced in view of the saying of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) that the mistake of a qazi (judge) in releasing a criminal is better than his mistake in punishing one.

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