Blasphemy death sentences overturned

RAWALPINDI:

The Rawalpindi Division Bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC) has allowed the appeals of four men previously sentenced to death in a blasphemy case and has ordered their immediate release.

The death sentences handed down to the accused, Faizan Razzaq, Usman Liaqat, Wazir Gul, and Muhammad Ameen, have been quashed in their entirety.

The Court directed that, provided they are not required in any other matter, they are to be released forthwith.

In 2023, the Additional District and Sessions Judge, Rawalpindi, had convicted the men under the relevant blasphemy provisions, awarding each of them the death penalty together with a fine of one hundred thousand rupees.

The case had been initiated by the FIA's Cyber Crime Wing based on online posts concerning revered religious figures, which were deemed to fall within the ambit of blasphemy laws.