Staff Report
LAHORE
An Ahmadi man has been arrested from Chenab Nagar, District Chiniot, on charges of Blasphemy for allegedly distributing an altered Urdu translation of the Holy Quran. The arrest sparked a protest by the Ahmadi community members residing in the area.
The accused man was among five members of the Ahmadi community that were nominated in an FIR lodged with the Chenab Nagar police station on January 7.
According to the complainant, Muhammad Hassan Moawia, the secretary general of Tahaffuz-e-Khatm-e-Nabuwat Forum Pakistan, the alleged desecration of the Holy Book took place four years ago.
The case was recently brought to the attention of the police in Chenab Nagar after they were notified by the office of the Chiniot District Police Officer. An official report was filed against the printer, publisher, author, composer, proofreader, and other unidentified accomplices under various provisions of the Pakistan Penal Code (Sections 295-B and 295-C) and the Punjab Holy Quran (Printing and Recording) Act of 2011 (Section 9-1). According to Moawia, the accused distributed the altered version of the Holy Book to children at a school function.
The police filed a case against the printer, publisher, author, composer, proofreader, and other unidentified accomplices under various provisions of the Pakistan Penal Code (Sections 295-B and 295-C) and the Punjab Holy Quran (Printing and Recording) Act of 2011 (Section 9-1).
After the case was filed, members of the Ahmadiyya community protested at the police station and blocked traffic on Chiniot-Sargodha Road. A spokesperson for the Ahmadiyya Community told Voicepk that the blasphemy case was a fabricated attempt to implicate their community members. He said the group would pursue the case legally within the rights guaranteed to minorities under the Constitution.
