Student sentenced to death in Pakistan for blasphemous messages on WhatsApp

A court in Pakistan has sentenced a 22-year-old student to death on charges of blasphemy over WhatsApp messages.

The court in Punjab Province said he had shared blasphemous pictures and videos with the intention to outrage the religious feelings of Muslims.

A 17-year-old was sentenced to life imprisonment as part of the same case. Both have denied wrongdoing.

Blasphemy is punishable by death in Pakistan. Some people have been lynched even before their cases go on trial.

The complaint was filed in 2022 by the cybercrime unit of Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in Lahore, the capital of Punjab. The case was referred to a local court in the city of Gujranwala.

In the ruling this week, the judges said the 22-year-old was sentenced to death for preparing photos and videos which contained derogatory words about Prophet Muhammad and his wives.

The younger defendant was given a life sentence for sharing the material.

(BBC)