Christian Accused of ‘Blasphemy’ in Pakistan Granted Rare Bail

By CompassDirect.org

LAHORE, Pakistan, August 4 (CDN) — In a rare move in Pakistan, a lower court in Punjab Province on Tuesday (Aug. 2) released on bail a young Christian man accused of blaspheming Islam. . . .

At the Aug. 2 hearing, the courtroom was packed with bearded, hard-line Muslims and a tense calm prevailed, said Niaz Aamer, an attorney for the Center for Law and Justice-Pakistan (CLJ-P), which is representing Masih. Aamer said that the judge asked him to read the FIR, but the attorney requested that the judge read it himself, silently, due to the sensitive nature of the case. After arguments, the judge awarded bail. . . .

The CLJ-P, an affiliate of European Center for Law and Justice, plans to file an application under Section 540-A of Pakistan’s Criminal Procedure Code to exempt Masih from court appearances on grounds that it would be too dangerous, Aamer said. . . .

You can read the entire story here.