ISLAMABAD (TheBlaze/AP) — A Pakistani judge granted bail Friday to a young, mentally challenged Christian girl accused of insulting Islam by burning pages of the religion’s holy book. TheBlaze has extensively covered this story since it commenced earlier this month.
Rights activists welcomed the decision. They had been calling for her
release ever since she was arrested. The case has focused attention on
Pakistan’s harsh blasphemy laws, which activists claim are used to
persecute minorities and settle personal vendettas.
Judge Mohammed Azam Khan set bail at 1 million Pakistani rupees, or
about $10,500, a significant sum in a country where many families live
on only a few dollars a day. A Pakistani group that represents
minorities said it would pay the bail.
“We feel that this is the real victory of truth and law,” said
Robinson Asghar, an aide to the Pakistani minister for national harmony
who has been closely following the case.
A lawyer representing the girl, Tahir Naveed Chaudhry, said the bail
would be paid Saturday, and then she would be freed. She is being held
in a prison in Rawalpindi, a city next to the capital of Islamabad.
The young girl, who is reported to be 14 years old and suffering from
some form of mental impairment, was arrested after an angry mob
surrounded her house in a neighborhood in Islamabad and accused her of
burning pages from the Koran, an act punishable by life in prison under
the country’s harsh blasphemy laws. Her lawyer has denied the
allegation.
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