The Lahore High Court’s Rawalpindi Bench has acquitted Aniqa Atiq, a woman previously sentenced to death and imprisonment on blasphemy charges. The court ordered her immediate release on Wednesday following a detailed hearing.
Aniqa Atiq had been sentenced to death in January 2022 by a special Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) court in Rawalpindi. She was accused of sending blasphemous messages. However, the Lahore High Court bench, consisting of Justice Sadaqat Ali Khan and Justice Chaudhry Waheed, ruled that the prosecution failed to present sufficient evidence to prove the charges.
Aniqa Atiq became the first Muslim woman and the third woman overall to receive a death sentence in a blasphemy case. The other two women, Asia Bibi and Shagufta Bibi, belonged to the Christian community and were later acquitted as well.
During the appeal hearing, Aniqa’s lawyer, Advocate Saif-ul-Malook, argued that the case was based on false allegations. He highlighted that the cybercrime authorities did not collect any forensic evidence to support the charges. The FIR had been filed ten days after the alleged incident in April 2020, and Aniqa’s mobile phone was never seized for investigation.
When questioned, the prosecution admitted that the mobile phone used in the alleged offense belonged to another woman. The Lahore High Court bench questioned why the actual owner of the phone or SIM card was not made a co-accused. The judges concluded that no evidence existed against Aniqa, making her prior death sentence unjustified.
The complainant, Hasnat Farooq, was also questioned about how he maintained contact with a woman for over a year without any religious or personal connection.
The case had been registered by the FIA Cybercrime Wing in Rawalpindi in 2020 under charges of blasphemy, religious insult, and violations of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act. Aniqa had consistently denied all allegations.
In other news read more about Robbers Flee With Rs. 6.2 Million From Medicine Company Vehicle, Police Launch Probe
After reviewing all evidence, the Lahore High Court accepted Aniqa Atiq’s appeal and ordered her acquittal, marking a significant judgment in Pakistan’s judicial history.
