Great work Br. Arafat Mazhar. I am no scholar, rather a very illetrate student of religion. Unless we address each issue with such an approach of research, we won't be able to resolve challenges we are facing. I hope we all start approaching religious issues with research and open mind, rather than just what we hear from Alim and Mufti - we need to question everyone except Allah, and his prophets.

The Prophet (PBUH) forgave all who caused physical & emotional harm to him, why can't we? Wasn't his act of forgiveness at the conquest of Mecca a clear message to us that forgiveness trumps vengeance?

Extremely well written and explained!

Junaid Jamshed faces the death penalty, according to the blasphemy laws, like Aisha Bibi, or will he be pardoned?

Great research! Such a shame no one ever tried to look into this before. So many lives could have been saved. its time for Parliament do its job. On a different note i thought Sharia law is based primarily on Quran and Sunnah? correct me if I am wrong and also i want to know which other Islamic countries have blasphemy law and do they have the pardon clause in it?

Secular Pakistan Zindabad!

Nobody follows a single law in Pakistan except for the blasphemy law. Strange. This law should be removed.

You are a brave man to point this out. Be careful.

IMHO the writer is right and as JJ himself admitted his mistake and asked for forgiveness form Allah(SWT) and all his fellow Muslim bros and sisters, this matter should be closed

Is this for real????

Will supreme court take notice of this???

Excellent work ..I wish it to be included in all print media of pakistan to make ppl understand

Wow! religious extremism is taking us down the drain

Seeking repentance for sins is what your Prophet taught all his life. He was sent to the world with this message. Quran tells Allah Almighty is the judge of all evil and good. I don't understand how people assumed that role. Isn't that blasphemy?

A WONDERFUL ARTICLE. All the lawyers and sympathisers of human rights need to ACT NOW in the light of these findings. Common people, it's the question of innocent lives being taken unjustly in the name of God.

Excellent article. You say, "Why does no credible source from the mainstream religious leadership then step forward and set the record straight?" Why not indeed. Why not for blashphemy, women's rights, paedophilia rappant in our society, men not giving women their due, injustices galore in society, for the right of education on all, for avoiding hate speeches etc etc...The answer to your question is they are generally spineless, lack vision and sadly only use the deen for their own gains/political agendas. That's why we are in this mess and why you had to write this article!

Islam is not as rigid as Mullahs have made it. This fact is drawing people away instead of inviting them to it. This is a classic example of it.

Keep it up

Can Qureshi sahib be bothered to write another book to clarify this? It won't be a best seller this time as Madrassahs will put a ban on it but will serve as a extremely helpful reference for sane minds.

this is the first time i heard it was debatable. I thought it was either a hadith or written in quran.

There is another version of Islam being practised in Pakistan and is fast leading to another sect - Mullah Islam - which will lead to another religion 'Mullahism' which is where Pakistan is heading. The Blasphemy Law is not there to protect Islam or Muslims - but Mullahs to increase their hold on the gullible public.

We expect mercy from Allah yet we give none. This law is being used to settle scores between various groups. Sharia is totally against such barbarity. He has clearly apologised and explained himself. Why now try to kill him? What purpose will it serve. People used to abuse the prophet pbuh and he had mercy from them. We should also learn from our prophet pbuh's actions. Mercy, clemency, education and love for each other. Sword in the hands of a fool will no doubt be used regardless.

Just because this time its Junaid Jamshed, every sane voice is talking in his favour! what about all those times when it was a non-muslim who was justly or unjustly accused to blasphemy, not a single sane voice spoke on this matter ever. how pathetic and discriminatory it is. A country which does not sees its citizens equal.

Thanks for sharing the info which unfortunately many leading religious scholars failed to do so.

Writings like this keep the hope alive. More power to the writer. The law is baseless, and current interpretation of it needs to go. Period.

Great work. Qureshi did very bad to this country.

Good work. May Allah reward you. It baffles my mind how come none of the scholars have taken a stand like this. Hope Junaid Jamshaid's situation can be the start.

I think that the followers of Religion of Peace should be more inclined towards peaceful options of co-existence. Overall a very well written piece. Hats off to the author!

I am outraged. I am outraged by the incompetency of our parliamentarians and the silence of all the scholars that people have died and continued to die because some people didn't do their research WELL?? I remember after salman taseer's assassination all i could hear was this law has never been challenged in history of islam and yeh and woh.

time for the progressive section of the society to talk back in the same language and save asia bibi and carry on the mission of salman taseer even if we do it with a different strategy

Dawn - kudos for publishing this

Why is there no mob gathering outside of Junaid Jamshed's home ready to lynch him?

OR does the concept of vigilante justice only apply to our wretched minorities.

After reading the comments, my morale went up. Thank you guys. Blasphemy law is something that scares me every time I think about visiting Pakistan as a tourist. But its really heartening to know that people of Pakistan can look at it critically and have courage to talk against it. I doubt if countries like Saudi Arabia would even allow such a discussion.

I wonder why would a religious person plead for mercy from the court that is implementing this law. If he or she admits to blasphemy, then wait for God to pardon you when you get there.

It seems like even mullahs also don't like the law, when they are accused of blasphemy.

What hypocrisy.

First, extremely brave guy and a very well-written piece.. When it comes to facts, yes, it should be proved first, if it is proved, the guilty gets a chance to make an apology, and can be pardoned.. This way, he is innocent.. However, those who want him hanged today have a very valid point.. The people who never bothered about the minorities being lynched over blasphemy accusations and those who actually spurred the whole fiasco, they do deserve a taste of their own medicine.. Emotionally, I'd very well love to see him punished.. Third, the main insult was against women in general.. Even if u pardon the alleged blasphemy, which obviously didnt happen, why on Earth wont anyone talk about the insult against all women?

I stongly advocate that our nation's laws be revised. In an era where we take God's name in vain, where people murder for the sake of religion, where morality is foresaken for selfishness, what gives us the right to manipulate people with laws that dont make any cohesive sense

I must commend this brave young man. After reading this I believe we have been approaching this problem rather foolishly. You can't win this argument while basing it on human rights. This whole thing is standing on a flawed logic and should be attacked there. Thank you Mr. Mazhar for this great article. It's unbelievable actually. Fascinating study.

Hope this article reaches the government of pakistan and its law ministry to enable them to revisit their blasphemy law and its clauses. Peace.

" Aaj Ayaa Hai Oont Pahar K Neeche"! I am not a vindictive person but I must say that if JJ is forgiven, then every other person blamed for blasphemy must be forgiven as well. Let us not play God!

The author is correct. His article points out a deeper issue. The current laws in Pakistan are a distortion of Islam. They are based on mullahism and fanaticism with the humane aspects completely discarded. It is the mullahs who must be held accountable.

If Junaid Jamshed is pardoned, and Aisha Bibi is put on death, it will be a discrimination and Hippocratic.

It was a genuine mistake and the guy has apologized, no more to this subject, end off.

Excellent article with such clarity. The author wrote, "Qureshi acknowledged that mistakes had been made in the research upon which the judicial interpretation of Pakistan's blasphemy law now rests. The history and process of how the events transpired to produce the law in its current form therefore, reads like a series of unfortunate errors". Does this mean that Advocate Ismaeel Qureshi, Gen. Zia, and all those who supported and worked to add the current blasphemy law language into the constitution bear the responsibility of all the bloodshed that has taken place? It is a great example of how much harm a thoughtless decision can cause. Needless to say that it is now the urgent duty of the current leadership and the highest judiciary to show courage, join hands, and amend the blasphemy law in the constitution. When Allah forgives, Prophet Mohammad (Peace be Upon Him) forgave his nemesis and tormentors, then why can't we. Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance. Let us get away from fanaticism.

fast readers on here, eh? Article was posted 14 minutes ago it says and already 39 comments posted.

I have big respect for Junaid Jamshead. he is a very pious person and AH he become role model for tens of thousands people around globe. people who are making issue just because of jealousy.

We must support him.

So let me get this straight. Some guy once made a mistake in understanding his master's work and then this other uber scholar tries to correct him by quoting him and this advocate mistakes the uber scholars rebuttal as his views and we've had hundreds of people dead because of this. WOW what a messed up world.

The biggest irony is that Junaid is against the Secular laws himself but right now he is in UK to save his life. So the conclusion is that Secular societies are good when it serves your interest otherwise they are bad, pretty bad.

Junaid jamshed urf JJ should weigh his words before speaking. Else he is destined to see more misery in future.

very well written.

Now he is popular person though a mediocre speaker so many are jumping in efforts to save Junaid. Its good to see this happening but what was the crime of other thousands unknown innocent people who have been killed even before having chance of fair trial in monkey courts. I feel shame to belong to country where we claim to be Muslim but don't learn anything from history. Jew women used to through trash on our prophet PBUH and he never asked any of his companion to kill her under blasphemy man made issue. Shame on Pakistan society and leaders particular who are scared of extremist reaction and don't repeal the law. Shame on lawyers who support Mumtaz Qadri mentality and have corrupted minds of millions by their actions. I have more respect for young Bilawal Bhotto who openly criticized Taliban and extremist. These extremist are becoming leaders as real Islamic scholars are keeping mouth shut or even leaving country for comfortable life standards.

My hope is that the law is repealed and all that are implicated though it be released, including all non-muslims. Advocate Ismaeel Qureshi should also come on the public media and ask for forgiveness from a nation led to the wrong path. Those who have died or killed due to this law, should be remembered and whatever can be done to ease the pain of their families be considered.

OMG

What a mess! We are sick of these muftis and their fatwa factories. Please come to the reason and modify or eradicate this law from our constitution...

The sources quoted in the article do NOT show that any non-Muslim has the same opportunity to repent and survive that the author argues Jamshed Junaid has. The author mentions Aasia Bibi, a Christian, at the end but his article concerns only Junaid. Needless to say, his sources allow no chance for survival to some Muslim who decides to become a Buddhist.

The questions that should be pondered over is: why only one instance of 'Blasphemy' and subsequent murder between 1900 and 1979 but so many in the past 35 years?

When he was singer no one cares. When be turned his life around running for his life. Only in Pakistan The land of Munafiqs.

@saraz

So did ZAB (2nd amendment) , Zia ul Haq and the wave of Mullahs.

This isn't about being left or right. Secular or religious. It's about facts that have been deliberately obscured.

When I was little, I heard stories about the nations who were wiped out because of their sins. I never really understood how but now I clearly see one more nation going down that route. Pakistan is its own worst enemy, all the cries about drone strikes and foreign involvement is just an excuse. JJ should be pardoned for sure but I heard his jab and I am furious about his comments about women.

There is a good chance he will be pardoned. The real unspoken truth behind this law seems to be a tool to oppress minorities and those who question Islamization, and further the grip of mullahs on the society with fear (motivation by fear is something they excel at if you heard how they give sermons and how they treat students in Madrasas).

A Great effort indeed, its about time that Ulema come forward and explain the correct positions.

@KhalidS This is probably the real reason public don't listen from good genuine scholars as all of them are scared to death to speak against extremist.

When it comes to the interpretation of Islamic jurisprudence the bucks stops at Imam Abu Hanifa - good research.

great article, I wish there were more articles on how certain Asian countries have made tremendous economic and social progress (such as S.Korea/China/Taiwan/japan/Singapore) while Pakistan is going backwards. There is too much emotional baggage when people discuss US and West. Religion is just one factor. Many Christians countries such as El Salvador, Peru , Honduras are in bad shape as well. There are many factors such as culture/law/human rights/population control etc. etc. need to be discussed.

So Asia Bibi too must be pardoned

Poor Junaid. This is what happens when a lamb tries to run with the wolves.

Well researched and pertinent to the topic. Keep it up Arafat, I can see you will inshallah go a long way. Technically the subject might be clear to a research minded person, however everyone must help in the following long term goals: 1: Difference (contrast) of punishment for Non muslim blasphemer' must be clarified again and again, by multiple authors, in multiple languages till the issue is clarified for all, it might take 20-25 years 2: A point must be added to penal code regarding punishment of those who lynch blasphemers. 3: 'Prayer leaders' at small villages and localities must be reached as a mission to educate them about this issue. In 100% of lynching or 'mass protest' cases the actual ignitors are illiterate 'prayer leaders' who are not trained 'ulema' from any school, rather they are accidentally in this 'profession'.

By the way, the letter of the cited law (295 C) as reproduced in the article clearly protects only the Prophet's name and says nothing about his companions. Am I reading it wrong?

Reason over religion. Enough said.

Everyone is saying JJ should be forgiven because he asked for forgiveness. But these very people kept quiet when Christians and others were imprisoned or killed because of blasphemy. Poor Taseer was murdered because he was asking people to forgive Asia.

A country people do not practice honesty in day to day dealings, this law has been applied to settle personal score rather than its spirit. It is therefore state's responsibility to suspend any penalty unless witnesses' integrity is certified.

Brilliant, brave and important piece of writing, Arafat. This should be shared widely and pointedly sent to lawmakers and Ulema in Pakistan who should be asked to state their position on this clearly. Enough cowardice in the face of ignorant bigotry.

Great Research !!

@Asif As it is being repeatedly said, why should Junaid Jamshed be pardoned, when others weren't?

@Malik G Very well said.

@NaMaaloom Fard I agree, when the preacher is blamed for blasphemy, all religious CITATION are out to pardon him, but no one was pushing for it before that. He even accepting and asking for forgiveness, he who knows more about crime. As you know, Police is punished more if they commit crime, because they are supposed to stop crime.

Lets see how it plays out.

None of the parties will ever speak of changing this rule in the parliament since it will definitely bring their points down as far as the right wing is concerned.Unfortunately this is something Pakistan will be stuck with forever it seems.

Brave Article

I wish such piece from our so called religious authorities. Atleast if this piece is wrong they should come up with the counter explaination.

I am glad that someone could actually write it up and more than that some medium actually published it. Awaz Zaroor Uthay Gi!

excellent read. it is of the most categorical importance that the record be set straight, and this misinterpretation be set right asap.

Thanks so much for your in-depth research, insight and analysis, Arafat. It was desperately needed.

An excellent article. This is a very important debate, and the author is on the right track here. The question of the blasphemy law itself is too volatile to be addressed without repercussions of an unsavory kind.

If the religio-legal tradition holds blasphemy pardonable, and the current legal application is purely a matter of misinterpretation and/or controvertible evidence, the matter must be highlighted in the media and pursued in court.

Very well written! May this become the first step to a much-needed process which will lead to the abolishment of this atrocious law.

You are a gentleman and a scholar. It is beyond my understanding why we look to centuries old books for forming laws in the present age, but your refutation of the current interpretation is amazing. Great work.

Guys, this is Arafat - the writer. just to clarify in the second scan of ismaeel qureshi's book - the page of references. in case you are wondering where has he listed ibn abidin in the references - its the 25th reference Radd ul Makhtar. I forgot to highlight it in yellow.

@Nitin Gulhane Dear you are welcome to Pakistan again and again.

I suppose Muslims can be pardoned but non-Muslims have no such luck in the Pakistani society.

Good research.

this is an incredible article and much needed in an environment where blasphemy is no longer questionable but automatically deigned to be the worst crime imaginable. the sooner we revisit and take the death penalty nonsense out of this, the more innocent people can go around spending their lives without the fear of death.

We must ban people to give speech publicly on religion without having a good moral and educated personality. We can see so many people beside Junaid Jamshed doing this. Ban Junaid and others like him to speak publicly until they show up with proper education and knowledge.

Islamic laws were good for their time i.e 1400 years back. Now we need new laws that will satisfy the needs of this age. People please contemplate. It is hard to give up the old ways but change is in

Our neighbors have sent rocket to mars and we are still trying to figure out what to do with the Blasphemy laws. Wake up pakistan before its too late.

repeal religiosity from constitution. mixing religion with state laws create disharmony and inequality among citizens of state and who may follow different belief systems, religions or no religion.

This article should be presented in the court of law to help the poor people getting victimized.

Allah is ever forgiving and merciful...He repeatedly says in the Quran to ask for forgiveness and He will forgive...so this says it All quite clearly if the Supreme power can forgive why can't mankind.Blasphemy law needs to be really looked into iin detail.

Please Muslims and fellow brothers don't be so rigid. Our prophet (PBUH)has spread the message of forgiveness all his life and that's why his life has been exemplary to the entire world not only for Muslims. He is a practising Muslim and follows sunnah to the best of his ability. We should follow the sunnah and should avoid being the judge. may Allah guide us and help us to follow the right path and the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH)

Allah is ever forgiving and mercifully...and expects the same from mankind. Blasphemy law needs to be definitely revised.

Great work Arrafat. Well explained.

This was eye opening! Excellent work!

wow Arafat mazhar. what a well researched article. Please keep them coming

We as followers of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) should refrain from showing double standards, one for a wealthy Muslims celebrity and the other for poor Christians and Hindu minorities. We should amend the blasphemy law immediately and forgive ALL the minorities who are being penalized through this law. ALLAH knows whether these poor minorities even committed this sin or they are just being victimized because they don't belong to the majority. If we are true followers of Islam and believe in the day of judgment we should track the people who were responsible in the killings of Christian couple last month and award them death penalty and do justice with the weak minorities living in Pakistan.

@Arafat Mazhar ASA...I am student of Islamic research Mr. Arafat and was wondering where can I get a good collection or web portal of Fiqhi works translated in Urdu from the classical arabic literature?

Actions must be judged by intentions. He did not intend to insult anyone. There may be some conspiracy ,I suspect. May Allah help him aameen. Does anyone know who has filed case against him?

@Aly Khan agree with you 200%

A great opening into this debate that does away with the 'hang jj/forgive jj' false dichotomy!

Excellent research!

Peace please.

Islam is not regid religion. It was stated by so many ulema many time in my different speeches. If somebody did any sin even these sins are bigger then mountains it is pardonable. The only condition is that He /she should repent in front of Allah with sincercity. Not due to people pressure. In case of Junaid jamshed as he is muslim and believe Allah and his rasool so repentance of any muslim including JJ is acceptable Similarly in case of asia bibi if she is muslim then her repentance is acceptable also. But non beliver it is not.there are two types of blesmphy one intional and ond is un intensional

@Badar Very True.

Well written, you did you homework before getting into this subject, I hope the Ulema and our court system does the same thing before deciding about taking some ones life, there is another book SHITAM E RASOOL KA MASALA written by Maulana Waheeduddin Khan, people should read it and get more clear picture of what Mr. Arafat has written on this topic. Good work Arafat Saheb, may Allah bless you with more wisdom.

It should be left to God to judge. Man has not be given the right to kill anyone.

It is simple as that. Those who strongly favour death penalty for blasphemy should look at themselves and ask if they are perfect human beings and punish themselves for all sins committed.

@kash Sharia is based on Fiqh. Its man made. The question you want to ask is why did the Rashidun (4 Caliphas) caliphas (RZ) differ from each other in terms of their fatwas? And why did they not author the perfect book of Sharia for all times?

Answer is simple - Islam is an interpretive religion and meant for all times - conditions change, what we need to get from Sunnah are principles and practices and then device our own rules to live in these times, but those rules are not sacred, they are changeable.

A very good write up. Please write often.

The commonly held view outside Pakistan is that the Koran can be interpreted as one sees fit

Much respect for your persistence. I know how long you've been working on this and how long you've been talking about this. I'm glad this has been so well received. I hope that its able to make a dent in the upper echelons of our rotten society.

This needs to be propagated as far and wide as possible.

Very well written and well researched. It isn't secular or sacred biased, it's factual.

@KhalidS - Khalid bhai this stance has been taken by the ulemas. Many of of the leading scholars within Deoband have repeatedly taken the stance for forgiveness and abuse of this paragraph. inc. in the cases against Geo's shaista lodhi. they also condemned the hideous crime against the christian couple.
however i feel that every time this happens the ulemas are up for a bashing. i fail to understand how it their responsibility for solve every single issue arising in Pakistan the anger should be diverted towards authorities. it is their responsibility to ensure the rule of law including their interpretation and enforcement. But i guess that is a bit far fetched to expect that in Pakistan.

Was there any Blasphemy law enforced in era of prophet Muhammad(pbuh)?if no then it must be repealed,its implications are agianst true Islamic spirit so need to develop consensus & give positive posture of Islam,

@Badar Its implications are against true Islamic spirit so need to develop consensus & give positive posture of islam.

@Anisa Ahmd Thanks Anisa, We need more youngsters with reason to stand up and be counted. Time to move on and live with present day, time and space.

In fact, the discussion in the Hanafi school was based on the grounds of apostasy. It was argued that the one committing blasphemy becomes an apostate, and the existing fatwa for apostasy was death, which is why death was considered as a punishment for blasphemy as well. Since the fatwa for apostates allowed pardon if the apostate seeks forgiveness and returns to Islam, the same was allowed for the one who blasphemed. Secondly, a logical consequence of this context was that the law excluded non-Muslims by definition since the punishment for blasphemy was discussed in the context of apostasy of those Muslims who left Islam.

Well researched article. I hope this gets us to debate about the problems in this law and ultimately fix those problems. Best of luck! and Kudos to Dawn for publishing this!

The position seems more in line with theists mic teachings of compassion and forgiveness.

Very well said AM, but please straighten out these Mullahs first.

This is exactly the kind of research and approach we need, it so neatly points everything out without the traditional "tarkay lagana" which has sadly become the benchmark of pakistani journalism today. Great article.

@Maria Bilal Keep it up- If the poor fellow stays alive.

a wonderful and much needed article!

Very sad law. Must be eliminated. Period.

Being a Christian we believe basic teaching of Christ FORGIVE, However in Junaid Jamshed's case he should be Trialed and face court decision. Not long ago Practicing muslims Burned Alive christian couple in Lahore, Junaid came on TV and accepted his mistake,why Pardon for one Individual and PUNISHMENT for others.

Religion and country are two different things. Keep them separate. In Syria and Turkey, praying in public or even keeping a long beard without permission could put a person in jail because it is forbidden to show religion out side your home. That is how it should be. Or else religion becomes the bastion of all the unemployed people who shout, kill, and follow orders just for two meals and some self importance.

The big question here is why have blasphemy laws at all? It seems that today's Muslims have weakened their faith that they feel that Islam is in danger if anyone makes a statement that they don't like.

All other religions have all kind of discourse which allows them to grow and progress. Pakistani's on the other hand are intolerant and make derogatory comments about all other religions, but cannot stand to be questioned.

I'm very glad someone is taking religion seriously in this country! After all it was the foundation Pakistan was built on!

Thank you for educating us!

Very well researched. I wonder what are mullahs doing sitting all day and declaring blasphemy on everyone? They should be the one researching these things instead of putting on banners with senseless hurmat-e-rasool banners.

@Batool

I am not a scholar but I think his intention was not to disrespect the Prophet peace be upon him or his beloved wife, our mother Aisha R.A.. No doubt it was a big negligence. Allah looks at hearts. He will be careful in future. LaHola waLa Quwat illa BiAllah. May Allah forgive us all because we all make mistake in our lives some of these may be taken as blasphemy. I am afraid to make any judgement. In fact masses should not judge but only those who have authority on Islamic teaching and law should be allowed to make judgements.

I am against judgement made by mobs even for non Muslims. In fact we are a nation who forget ourselves in improvements and run after others to improve them and punish them.

@Azam Khan Islamic laws are there till yom e qiamah.....if interpreted correctly & not manipulated.

When people look into books to see if one should be killed for a crime, then they have given up all thinking faculties.

@Khizr Looks like this guy was appointed Rector of the National School of Public Policy.

So much energy wasted just to prove others are bad muslims and one is a better muslim. So much law created to punish and kill at the drop of a hat but little created to help the poor and powerless.

Amazing work bythe author. I wish our rreligious leaders pay head to it. A simple mistake have taken so many innocent live.

@Asim Zafar you cannot forgive JJ without forgiving the others. A nation must have only one set of laws for all its people.

Otherwise we have apartheid, the system that was followed in south africa.

@rafaqatwan blasphemy is not covered anywhere in the Quran. Also, you are supposed to follow Sunnah, not Hadith. All Sunnah are Hadiths, but not all Hadiths are Sunnah.

Zinda baad. Glad somebody has the guts to call a spade a spade.

The common citizen has no say in matters of reilgion and it is the so called few devout mullahs and ayotollahs who interpret relegion to suit their obscurantitst views .They bring a bad name to religion.Islam has earned a reptuation as a hardline relgion in the world mainly because of mullhas who show no understanding or have sympathy ofr its values.

Allah is the most merciful, unfortunately those who follow his teachings aren't. What an irony.

I don't understand why are the mullas making such a hue and cry when the person has apologized in public and accepted that it was purely based on ignorance. Allah(SWAT) is gaforur-raheem, Junaid Jamsheed has done a great service to Islam and he has already asked for forgiveness. May Allah(SWAT) bring his mercy on JJ. # love and respect .

When our Prophet was alive didn't he forgave those who brought physical harm to him! I wonder why is there a law which deviates from the very principle of Islam that is forgiveness. There is a strong need to amend the law!

Well written however the author forgets that eventhough modt pakistani muslims are hanafi, the minority wahabis or deobandis have tajen over religios thought and they considr this as unpardonable

At least people like JJ will think many times before they speak, opening the much needed chapter of tolerance in our society....

@Sadiq wel said

How the mighty have fallen, with a slip of the tongue!

I hope that he can come out of this mess. I have seen the video in which he made the derisory comments against Syedna Ayesha (r.a.), but also women, in general, in the same sentence. But, this article should be an opener for many folks who are not aware of the rulings on Pakistan's blasphemy law and the Hanafi Law of Jurisprudence (incl. myself).

@Ram Narayanan ,More Muslims are found guilty of blasphemy than non Muslims,could you give me only one example where non Muslim was hanged by this law,of course not.

thank you for this wonderfully researched article.

"295-C – Use of derogatory remarks, etc., in respect of the Holy Prophet: Whoever by words, either spoken or written, or by visible representation or by any imputation, innuendo, or insinuation, directly or indirectly, defiles the sacred name of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) shall be punished with death, or imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to fine".

The law prescribes a fixed death penalty for all those who are found guilty. The option of life imprisonment was made defunct after a 1991 Federal Shariat Court judgement.

The edifice of Islam rests on Justice, if there is no justice there is no Islam. For capital punishment such as the one stipulated in Section 295C PPC there must be a clear Commandment in Qur'aan and clear practice of the Prophet, Muhammad, peace be upon him through which this Quranic Commandment is explained and demonstrated. Unfortunately, I have failed to find such a clear Commandment in Qur'aan and Sunnah.

In Islam you cannot make a Law on mere cherry-picking. It requires thorough research to examine and formulate it from all angles.

@Nitin Gulhane : Man! We do look critically and no one will really bother you about anything as long as you respect our religion. You respect us we will love and respect you , its that simple.

I am extremely impressed by the research you have put in the subject. Brilliantly written article. I honestly hope that more people understand this and the law is modified.

@Badar "I hope we all start approaching religious issues with research and open mind, rather than just what we hear from Alim and Mufti - we need to question everyone except Allah, and his prophets." You are hoping for become every one a mufti by just doing Reasearch??? by just reading 3 or more books one could stand beside mufti?? Instead then you can also create your own fiqh.

The matter is extremely sensitive in nature. Understandably, even authorities on Islamic jurisprudence generally tend to be reticent on the subject. Given the prevailing environment of increasing intolerance and obscurantism, the effort by the author and DAWN deserve kudos.

Advocate Ismaeel Qureshi, author of Pakistan"s Blasphemy Law, has a religious, national and moral obligation to spearhead an appropriate amendment to the Blasphemy Law in light of the omission indicated in the article under reference.

At stake are human lives held sacrosanct by all religions.

A wise person before he speaks, will consider well what he speaks to whom he speaks where and when.

Very good article. Well written and should be published in urdu newspapers as well. It's highly important to educate the common Pakistani people who blindly follow ignorant mullahs

It has to be a limit to everything ... if some one is NOT an Aalim, why is he sitting at a TV Channel and talking in the capacity of an Aalim in the first place? If I will be offered a show to conduct as an Aalima, i will refuse to , because i dont have the knowledge which is required to conduct that certain type of mass medium show. How Junaid and Amir Liaqat( both are backing out to be an Aalim position and saying we are NOT aalims) can be allowed to be on a show like this? how can they can easily take this hat of an Aalim and when it comes to responsibility , can easily take this hat off ? i strongly condemn these branded Aalims, who are making fun of my graceful religion.

Finally, some intelligent, evidence-based discussion on this law. This is the direction the national conversation needs to go in. Great work man. Would love to read a follow-up article on this same topic.

Junaid Jamsheed has not been charged yet as only an FIR has been registered against him. Once police will arrest him and complete the investigation then his challan will be submitted before the court, then the court will charge him, in legal sense.

I wish if someone can do the same research on the source of Talaq Talaq Talaq?

No one has been executed for blasphemy in Pakistan. But most of the accused have been killed by someone or the other. Junaid Jamshed will live forever in fear because many Pakistanis are convinced that killing such a person is a sure way reserve a place in heavens.

@dipak it is not a bad law. its a law and law are made for peace

May Allah reward you for this pious effort And may Muhammad (P.B.U.H.) be happy with your effort to prove that he was a "Rehmatal-lil- Alameen".

about time somebody went into depth to explain the word 'blasphemy', and that will not sit well with hard heads who have no idea what it means and only know what their mullah has told them so. truth of the matter is that if you put arguments against clergy, they will lose and they don't want to lose cause they lose an argument, they lose following and there no business like faith business in Pakistan !!!

The Wahabi/Salafi/Takfiri mindset is hijacking the Hanafi school of thought for the promotion of their own version of Islam.

Great and wonderful research work on concept and true interpretation of the blasphemy law.

@KhalidS I totally agree with you

@Huda Jilani thank youuu. couldnt have said myself...

he is in london now wont be coming to pak,but 10 year down the line asking sharia in london.good job man

Blasphemy laws will never change in this country. If they do, people might actually start openly debating pros and cons and open thought might lead to derogation of religious identity and beliefs. This cannot be allowed to happen, ever. People must only have one view of religion, never doubt it, never question it. That is the only way!

@SpreadSomeLove fully agree

@Aisha This law should not be removed, but we have to follow other laws as well.

Just a quick question: In all of JJs life i'm sure he read about many minorities who were charged with blasphemy law. As a preacher, what was his contribution and stance on speaking up for the truth?

You are a brave man Arafat! A brilliant article. If the judicial interpretation is reviewed there is hope for Junaid Jamshed and Asia bibi. And if this incident sets a precedent, more madness and gloom could be avoided.

Does any sane person has to through volumes of books on theology to figure out that such laws are barbaric and belong to an unenlightened age? A terrible and sad situation.

Laws are made by governments that comprise of people..........and laws can be unmade by people. What is needed is that the concerned people muster the courage to do what is right.

Well done! Now translate it into Urdu and drum it into the countless DIY Islamic scholars who are ready to become killing machine for any unspecified or specified cause (as long as killing is involved). If all new papers and media do it without discrimination there may be a chance for redemption.

Pakistan or entire Islamic world is now where Europe or much of Christian world was in 500 years back. The age of darkness is maturing in the land of the "pure". There are two options, we head back to stone age or progress to a civilized society. I hope will be in a civilized society someday, though it may take 5 more centuries.

Brilliant. Laws may not be all bad. Misuse of laws is the real problem.

I admire the meticulous research done by Mr Mazhar. It is interesting, thought, Such dispassionate research into should be necessitated because the danger was now at ones own door-step. Never mind. We may at least hope that it will also cease to be a weapon to terrorize the helpless hapless minorities in Pakistan

Thanks to Arafat for enlightening us on this important subject. Let's raise voice for the repealing or at least changing this law.

@riz Questioning or Reasoning is the only thing which differentiates human from apes. Following anything without reasoning is the work of apes. Without questioning there is no evolution.

Well done. If these arguments are correct then shame on all the aalims who were unable to raise a voice against this so far. ON the other hand, what constitutes a blasphemy also deserves a debate. Also shame on many of us who are criticizing JJ's defense as being hypocritical. Two wrongs don't make a right, I hope some sense prevails in the end.

Well reseached article. After listening to the apology, we must pardon JJ and let all the people in Tableeghi Jamaat know their limits. We Pakistanis are tollerent people and wholehartedly love Prophet (PBUH) and all Sahabas.

All Blasphemy Laws should be abolished and there should be a separation of State and Religion.

Abolish all blasphemy laws and separate the State from Religion.

Im not spreading hate just asking the obvious, what JJ did offcourse wasn't right but there are "people" (everyone knows who they are) in Pakistan openly doing that as well. Why are They not being pointed out??

How many lives we have destroyed in the name of an erroneous law!

I have only one thing to say that people should research and rehearse their work before presenting it to public,specially when it comes to religious matters.This could happen again with someone else, whether pardonable or unpardonable.Special care should be exercised when one is talking about our Holy Prophet(PBUH) and his Ahl-e-Bait... People seem to be laying a lot of stress on whether JJ should be punished or not,but the actual point is that such carelessness does not happen in future!!!

@Asim Zafar where was this wisdom when Aisa biwi was sentenced. Now all "scholar" are coming out of wood work when a fellow mulla get caught in the same muck !!

In the light of the above research, it is time the blasphemy law is revised and rectified.

The government, the judiciary and the nation should apologise to those who lost their lives just because of a 'misinterpretation'. The government for its apathy to initiate any debate, the judiciary because of its calculated lethargy, and the nation for being passive recipients of these 'misinterpretations'.

JJ has realized his mistake and asked for pardon. I think keeping in view of his contributions to the society he should be pardoned. Thanks for bringing truth to the people Mr. Mazhar.

very happy to see someone point out the mistakes in the blasphemy law. great work done and i hope this goes to mainstream. our Prophet(p.b.u.h) forgave people of taif when they had him bleed till the extent that his shoes got filled with blood, he(p.b..u.h) even forgave the people of Makkah after all the hardships and brutal times they gave him and the muslims. so what was all that for? we all should question anything we get to hear of sheer importance regarding our religion because this is how we can all be better muslims

Thank you Arafat for raising a sane voice, and that too with an excellent research piece. Please keep writing.

Thank you so much for contributing such a well-intentioned and researched article. I wish all our mullahs will read and pay head along with the judicary that lays the foundations for an effective governance.

Ive heard his original comments or atleast part of it. Whilst he could have said all that in a better way but whatever he did say that does exist, although there was perhaps some addition to the original story. Surely it dint sound blasphemous in spirit to me. Lastly, as far as women's right people are considered in short all he implied was women are different and moral of the story was that men should co-exist with them and not try to force and change their behavior to suit their own. He hasnt said anything against women but actually for women, so Men in our society understand women better and do not impose things on them. My personal view is Men and Women are not equal, they are different physically and approach matters differently from psychological point of view.

A much needed elaboration on the most controversial and most frequently misinterpreted law in Pakistan. Everyone, especially those who feel the need to comment on the blasphemy law with absolutely no knowledge of it whatsoever, NEED to read this. A great initiative taken by Dawn in publishing this piece. Looking forward to reading more articles on this subject.

For some writing such an article is itself blasphemous. If a society is such an intolerant to this issue, to reform or change this law is not possible for any person and government. We may not be doing any thing Islamic or following the prophets foot steps, but any words against him will be punished by death.

Prophet Mohammad Pardoned all the Meccans when the Muslims finally captured Mecca.These were the Meccans who insulted him and wanted to kill him.

This is the great example Prophet Mohammad has left for us.

Who are we to judge any one in the affaires of their thoughts and beliefs.

Very well written.

@Azam Khan: Bravo the first ever post that draws attention to the fact that Islamic (and for that matter Christian) laws/gospels were written from 1400 and from 2014 years ago in language that would be understood by largely desert and uneducated people. Were the founding fathers of both religions to have lived today, does anyone imagine for a moment that they would deliver their sermons/commandments etc in the language and manner that they did in those days? I think the world has come a long way since then, and if you believe in the Almighty, then the world has evolved this far because the Almighty has wanted it to progress. If not, the all-powerful Almighty would have put a permanent stop to what often is our madness.

Great work. I think what Junaid has Said was not a clear act of blasphemy rather mistakenly spoken words which are due to his lack of knowledge. Therefore the Tablikhi Hazrat should be advised, not to put forward everybody on the Member to deliver religious speeches. And how a Muslim can be derogatory and blasphemous regarding his own prophet? This was just a stupid mistake of a former singer and recent Tablighi orator. He was not aware of Aadab e Guftago on religious topics. Should be forgiven.

@Sunil Mr. Sunil Case is different. what were the actual words of them individually?

The merit of any law should be judged by the result it brings & not the debate or controversy it creates. By promoting intolerance & bigotry this law has only been abused by all & sundry and has brought great shame to our country & our religion. Have we asked ourselves why no other muslim country is using this law with such frequency or predictability?

Great article by a truly knowledgeable scholar. Let us start listening to the enlightened and shed away the misguided leaders of the nation and our religion.

Great Insight.

Great work

Great article. More writers should be writing on this sensitive issue.

Finally, a re-examination of original sources. Good job!

Wonderful article.

Great piece. Lets get a conversation started on this issue!

Excellent work Arafat. I hope this research will open doors for the debate.

Excellent work, Arafat. I hope this will help opening doors for the debate.

This Blasphemy law should be completely abolished. Its only a source of politics and mischief. It has no place in any civilized society. People are struggling under so many social burdens already - caste, gender discrimination, corruption, lack of basic needs. Such draconian religious and social rules are the roadblocks to stop Pakistan realizing its potential.

Junaid Jamshed is a good Muslim and I believe he made a mistake in this matter. He should receive a pardon but those who are guilty of intentional blasphemy such as Asia Bibi must submit to the rule of law so long as they do not repent their actions.

@NaMaaloom Fard ;

"JJ is forgiven, then every other person blamed for blasphemy must be forgiven as well"

Every other person has been forgiven, nobody has been executed by this law yet.

It's crystal clear now. Great work!

@Kashim - Were Salman Taseer, Kot Radha Kishan couple, the Ahmediya gentleman and innumerable others given a chance to repent ? Now since a "devout" muslim has what they call a moment of madness, you all have become so large-hearted ! Where was this magnamity in the earlier events ?

Things are really confusing in Pakistan. Apparently its just an honest mistake by JJ, for which he has said sorry. But there is a lot of biases hidden behind this. Tha can be understood from JJ's follow up letter via platform of jamia banoria in which has come down hard on a minority sect which was not at all involved in this blame game. In doing so he has lost out on supporter like myself who have followed him since teenage, and really appreciated the way he has evolved. Was least bothered by which sect he belonged to, but am frightened by his stance showing sympathies for a terrorist group.

Very productive pursuits the Pakistani public have!

@riz is that said in satire ?

Pardoning a true repenter is compassionate aspect of Islam and every religion.

It is the middlemen who cause the distortions.

@Zubaida Khan Dear sister, how wonderfully you have said whatever I wanted to say. God bless you. I really hope we start teaching our children to respect every other religion the same way we want others to respect Islam.

Interesting article. Pardoning Aasia Bibi is the only morally appropriate position! #Pardon4Blasphemy

What he said, is not blasphemy, joining any sect is blasphemy. ~Adam~

Our Ulmas in parliament and heading seminaries should come out in favor or against this article.

Members of Pakistan parliament should read comments from the democrats and act quickly.

@Badar, you do not need a scholar to understand the issue. Any act punishable with death has been described in Quran being a very serious issue. If it is not in Quran, it is not there. Period. Rest is all Taveelaats. good for ever quarreling mullahs and scholars to indulge in never ending argumants.

Islam states that there should be no coercion of religion. How then can blasphemy exist if people are supposed to have religious freedom? ..... freedom to say what they do and do not believe?

Blasphemy is a pretend crime with no victims.

Blasphemy is a pretend crime with no victims except those that are accused or prosecuted for it.

please write an Urdu version of this article. The majority of Pakistanis who are fooled at the hands of the mullahs wouldn't bother reading or comprehending your research and the English speaking lot already hates mullahs

Thank you.

hats off to you !!!

This is a very matter. At time of prophet many ppl committed blasphemy and later become sahaba. They were not charged with death penalty. There is no offence in the that is not pardonable.

So salman taseer was correct. This law needs revision

Great research! I do not believe in religion but the ones who believe should read their own texts.

@Nasir Banning a book almost ensures it becomes a best seller. Most people never hear of obscure books and movies until they are banned.

Why the corrupt people of ruling or PRE ruling who have eaten up pakistani money in billions of dollars not punished or questions

Incredible investigative journalism! Gripping from start to end!

While the Blasphemy Laws in Pakistan must appropriately amended by the National Assembly, in a unanimous manner, Pakistanis need to be more tolerant and respectful of all religions without exception!