Senate passes bill to increase blasphemy punishment

ISLAMABAD: The Senate on Monday passed a bill aiming to increase the punishment for making derogatory remarks against revered personalities, including the family, wives, and companions of the Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him), as well as the four caliphs.

The bill, “The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2023,” had already been passed by the National Assembly in January. The bill was presented by PML-N Senator Hafiz Abdul Karim.

The bill, aims to make amendment to Section 298-A of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), says: “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 any wife (Ummul Mumineen), or members of the family (Ahl-i-Bait) of the Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him), or any of the righteous caliphs (Khulafa-i-Rashideen) or companions (Sahaaba) of the Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both.”

The bill aims to modify this provision, proposing that the punishment for this violation be “a life imprisonment term, lasting no fewer than 10 years.”

In February, Human Rights Minister Riaz Hussain Pirzada, had advised Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to reverse the amendments made by the bill. Pirzada expressed concerns that the amendments were driven by the intention to appease a specific group and were endorsed without adhering to the proper parliamentary procedures.

“Minority groups have raised their eyebrows on ignoring a good practice in parliamentary business followed for amending a law to eliminate technical defects rather intending to persecute a specific group,” read the letter.

The bill also received opposition from some members of the House. “There’s an inclination of passing bills in haste,” said Sherry Rehman. “We do care about the respect of all prophets … but a bill should not be passed without analysis in the name of religion,” she said.