A Pakistani court sentenced a woman to death for sending ‘blasphemous messages’ to her estranged friend.
The woman, Anika Attique, was found guilty by a court in Rawalpindi on Wednesday after a complaint was registered against her by one Farooq Hassanat in 2020.
Anika Attique was charged with committing blasphemy against the prophet, insulting Islam and violating the cybercrime laws, news agency PTI reported on Wednesday.
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According to reports, Anika and Farooq were friends but eventually, differences erupted between the two, following which Anika sent him ‘blasphemous’ messages on WhatsApp, the report said.
The accuser alleged that Anika sent him blasphemous caricatures of holy prophets and made remarks about “holy personages” on WhatsApp, the Guardian reported.
He also accused her of using her Facebook account to transmit blasphemous material to other accounts.
Anika “deliberately and intentionally defiles sacred righteous personalities and insulted the religious beliefs of Muslims”, the report said while quoting the chargesheet.
Farooq asked Anika to delete the messages and say sorry for her action, but she refused.
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Consequently, Farooq filed a complaint against her with the cybercrime wing of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).
An investigation was launched and a case was filed. Later, Anika was arrested for further probe and prosecution.
However, Anika denied all the charges.
During the court hearing, she said that she believed “the complainant intentionally dragged her into a religious discussion so he could collect evidence and take revenge after she refused to be friendly with him”, the report said.
Pakistan’s blasphemy laws were enacted by former military dictator Ziaul Haq in the 1980s, the report said.
Nobody has been executed under these laws but several people have been killed on mere suspicion of committing blasphemy.
Last year, a Sri Lankan man working as a manager in a factory in Sialkot city was lynched by a mob after he was accused of blasphemy.
(Inputs from PTI, The Guardian)