A local court in Pakpattan has granted bail to an illiterate Christian woman and Muslim gardener charged with blasphemy after they were accused of intentionally burning papers containing Quranic verses last month, her lawyer confirmed.
Musarrat Bibi and her co-accused, Muhammad Sarmad, were granted post-arrest bails on May 12 in exchange for surety bonds of PKR 100,000 each, according to lawyer Lazar Allah Rakha. On May 13, the two were released from jail.
"The court accepted my claims that the First Information Report [FIR] against Musarrat Bibi and Muhammad Sarmad was registered with a four-day delay." "Moreover, none of the defendants intended to burn the Quranic pages," the lawyer said.
In the school where Musarrat worked as an office assistant and Sarmad was the gardener, both illiterate workers were only carrying out orders of the school administration to clean the storeroom, the lawyer added.
The Christian woman was represented by lawyers Lazar Allah Rakha and Javed Sahotra, while lawyer Saeed Ahmed spoke on behalf of Sarmad.
While expressing a sigh of relief over this development, minority rights activist Joseph Jansen hailed the relief from the court and termed it a pleasant breeze for the victims of false blasphemy accusations.
He praised the commitment and courage of all three lawyers who presented arguments before the court in an effective manner and succeeded in providing relief to Musarrat Bibi and Muhammad Sarmad.
Musarrat Bibi and her co-accused, Muhammad Sarmad, were granted post-arrest bails on May 12 in exchange for surety bonds of PKR 100,000 each, according to lawyer Lazar Allah Rakha. On May 13, the two were released from jail.
"The court accepted my claims that the First Information Report [FIR] against Musarrat Bibi and Muhammad Sarmad was registered with a four-day delay." "Moreover, none of the defendants intended to burn the Quranic pages," the lawyer said.
In the school where Musarrat worked as an office assistant and Sarmad was the gardener, both illiterate workers were only carrying out orders of the school administration to clean the storeroom, the lawyer added.
The Christian woman was represented by lawyers Lazar Allah Rakha and Javed Sahotra, while lawyer Saeed Ahmed spoke on behalf of Sarmad.
While expressing a sigh of relief over this development, minority rights activist Joseph Jansen hailed the relief from the court and termed it a pleasant breeze for the victims of false blasphemy accusations.
He praised the commitment and courage of all three lawyers who presented arguments before the court in an effective manner and succeeded in providing relief to Musarrat Bibi and Muhammad Sarmad.