British pensioner facing three years in Pakistan jail after being tricked into reading the Koran in

[Bhai Zakir]

British pensioner facing three years in Pakistan jail after being tricked into reading the Koran in public

An elderly British man faces up to three years in a Pakistani prison after he was tricked into reading the Koran in public.

Masud Ahmad, 72, belongs to the minority Ahmadiyya sect, who under Pakistani law are banned from calling themselves Muslim, with Amnesty International saying he was deliberately tricked into reading the holy book in Lahore by figures linked to a right-wing religious group.

The case comes just a week after Mohammad Asghar, a 69-year-old alleged paranoid schizophrenic from Edinburgh, was sentenced to death in Pakistan for apparently claiming to be the Prophet Mohammad in letters he wrote to government officials.

Banned: Masud Ahmad belongs to the minority Ahmadiyya sect, who under Pakistani law are not allowed to call themselves Muslim or read the Koran in public. His family say he was duped into doing so




It is believed Mr Ahmad was secretly filmed reading from the Koran in November last year by two men posing as patients at the homeopathy clinic he ran in Lahore.

Amnesty International say he was maliciously targeted because of his religion.


More...

• Mentally ill Briton accused of claiming to be Prophet Mohammad is sentenced to death by Pakistani court
• Fury after Muslim guests at Commons event are told to use a BAR as a prayer room

Every year dozens of Ahmadi Muslims are charged with breaching Pakistan's strict blasphemy laws simply for practicing Islam, while they and other minority groups are also at risk of sectarian violence.

Speaking to The Independent, Mr Ahmad's son Abbas, 39, said: 'We are concerned he will never see his nine grandchildren but we are concerned with his life. We know what happens [in] these sort of cases.'

Abbas Ahmad said his father had been released on bail ahead of a trial and is currently in secure accommodation.

He added: We want to bring him back to Britain... In Pakistan there is no justice. Someone has made a false case and they have sent him to prison for nothing'.

Until he returned to Pakistan in 1982 for an operation to remove a tumour, Mr Ahmad had lived in London for 22-years working as a photographer.

Strict: Scores of people have been arrested in Pakistan under the country's harsh blasphemy laws. Every year dozens of Ahmadis are punished by strict religious courts




His case echoes that of Mohammad Asghar - the mentally ill man from Edinburgh who was sentenced to death in Pakistan last week after he allegedly claimed to be the Prophet Mohammad.

Mr Asghar was arrested in 2010 in Rawalpindi, near the capital Islamabad, for making the claims in letters he sent to various government officials.

But a lawyer who defended Mr Asghar said and the case was really a property dispute and that his 69-year-old client is currently in very poor health facing death for a crime that was never committed.

Amnesty International's deputy Asia Pacific director Polly Truscott said: 'Mohammad Asghar is now facing the gallows simply for writing a series of letters. He does not deserve punishment. No one should be charged on the basis of this sort of conduct.

David Cameron spoke out against the verdict in the week, saying he was 'deeply concerned' that the Pakistani court had failed to include medical evidence in Mr Asghar's trial.

British pensioner facing three years in Pakistan jail after being tricked into reading the Koran in public | Mail Online

 

[faisal6309]

Watch full video

British pensioner facing three years in Pakistan jail after being tricked into reading the Koran in public

An elderly British man faces up to three years in a Pakistani prison after he was tricked into reading the Koran in public.

Masud Ahmad, 72, belongs to the minority Ahmadiyya sect, who under Pakistani law are banned from calling themselves Muslim, with Amnesty International saying he was deliberately tricked into reading the holy book in Lahore by figures linked to a right-wing religious group.

The case comes just a week after Mohammad Asghar, a 69-year-old alleged paranoid schizophrenic from Edinburgh, was sentenced to death in Pakistan for apparently claiming to be the Prophet Mohammad in letters he wrote to government officials.

Banned: Masud Ahmad belongs to the minority Ahmadiyya sect, who under Pakistani law are not allowed to call themselves Muslim or read the Koran in public. His family say he was duped into doing so


It is believed Mr Ahmad was secretly filmed reading from the Koran in November last year by two men posing as patients at the homeopathy clinic he ran in Lahore.

Amnesty International say he was maliciously targeted because of his religion.

More...

• 
  
  
  • Mentally ill Briton accused of claiming to be Prophet Mohammad is sentenced to death by Pakistani court
  • Fury after Muslim guests at Commons event are told to use a BAR as a prayer room

Every year dozens of Ahmadi Muslims are charged with breaching Pakistan's strict blasphemy laws simply for practicing Islam, while they and other minority groups are also at risk of sectarian violence.

Speaking to The Independent, Mr Ahmad's son Abbas, 39, said: 'We are concerned he will never see his nine grandchildren but we are concerned with his life. We know what happens [in] these sort of cases.'

Abbas Ahmad said his father had been released on bail ahead of a trial and is currently in secure accommodation.

He added: We want to bring him back to Britain... In Pakistan there is no justice. Someone has made a false case and they have sent him to prison for nothing'.

Until he returned to Pakistan in 1982 for an operation to remove a tumour, Mr Ahmad had lived in London for 22-years working as a photographer.

Strict: Scores of people have been arrested in Pakistan under the country's harsh blasphemy laws. Every year dozens of Ahmadis are punished by strict religious courts


His case echoes that of Mohammad Asghar - the mentally ill man from Edinburgh who was sentenced to death in Pakistan last week after he allegedly claimed to be the Prophet Mohammad.

Mr Asghar was arrested in 2010 in Rawalpindi, near the capital Islamabad, for making the claims in letters he sent to various government officials.

But a lawyer who defended Mr Asghar said and the case was really a property dispute and that his 69-year-old client is currently in very poor health facing death for a crime that was never committed.

Amnesty International's deputy Asia Pacific director Polly Truscott said: 'Mohammad Asghar is now facing the gallows simply for writing a series of letters. He does not deserve punishment. No one should be charged on the basis of this sort of conduct.

David Cameron spoke out against the verdict in the week, saying he was 'deeply concerned' that the Pakistani court had failed to include medical evidence in Mr Asghar's trial.

British pensioner facing three years in Pakistan jail after being tricked into reading the Koran in public | Mail Online

 

[BATMAN]

Reading Quran is no crime.

Watch full video

Video blocked.

 

[Sugarcane]

It's time to scrap these idiotic laws and put the extremist scums behind the bars.

 

[faisal6309]

Reading Quran is no crime.


Video blocked.

This is just an example video. An evidance to show that we don't stop anyone to read about our religion or act like muslim. But the case with Qadiyanis is different, Still they are also not forced to stop reading Quran. This news looks fake. If real then he was maybe seen by some exptremist people

 

[Pakistani E]

This is a slap in the face for those who were arguing with me few months ago that there is no law banning ahmadis from reading the Qur'an. But unfortunately you won't see any of those two faced cowards posting here. They usually go and hide and when they get caught out.

This is just an example video. An evidance to show that we don't stop anyone to read about our religion or act like muslim. But the case with Qadiyanis is different, Still they are also not forced to stop reading Quran. This news looks fake. If real then he was maybe seen by some exptremist people

This news looks fake because it doesn't suit your view?

 

[faisal6309]

This is a slap in the face for those who were arguing with me few months ago that there is no law banning ahmadis from reading the Qur'an. But unfortunately you won't see any of those two faced cowards posting here. They usually go and hide and when they get caught out.



This news looks fake because it doesn't suit your view?

I said if read then he may be seen by some extremists. Otherwise no one is bound to read only their religion's holy book and you know it. Also it is a uk link. They were also saying last month that Pakistan is selling nukes to Saudi.

 

[Hashshāshīn]

Most idiotic law I have ever heard of.

Even if he is non-Muslim, since when were non-Muslims banned from reading the Quran?

What a shithole.

 

[Pakistani E]

I said if read then he may be seen by some extremists. Otherwise no one is bound to read only their religion's holy book and you know it. Also it is a uk link. They were also saying last month that Pakistan is selling nukes to Saudi.

Lol aap log ki aadat hai ke jo baat pasand na aya ussay british,American, jewish conspiracy bracket main daal dete ho, aur jo baad na mumkin se na mumkin ho magar apkay haq mai ho to usko sach samajhte ho.

And it is true, it has happened, go check some Pakistanis news papers, its on there too.

 

[Dubious]

The case comes just a week after Mohammad Asghar, a 69-year-old alleged paranoid schizophrenic from Edinburgh, was sentenced to death in Pakistan for apparently claiming to be the Prophet Mohammad in letters he wrote to government officials.

Why was this thrown into the news? For an extra bonus?

I dont get what is wrong with reading the Quran? Did he bring his own version and started reading that in public? If that is the case there maybe some problem there...Did he get in brawl with authorities? I doubt you can tell if someone is Ahmedi just by asking him to read the Quran! Heck you cant even tell if one is Muslim or not if he reads the Quran...I have heard some non-Muslim scholars reading the Quran....no one threw them in jail!

I am guessing news is cutting off some other pieces of the puzzle!

 

[faisal6309]

Lol aap log ki aadat hai ke jo baat pasand na aya ussay british,American, jewish conspiracy bracket main daal dete ho, aur jo baad na mumkin se na mumkin ho magar apkay haq mai ho to usko sach samajhte ho.

And it is true, it has happened, go check some Pakistanis news papers, its on there too.

There is no law who bound you to not read holy books of other religions and I am not talking against him.

 

[Dubious]

But a lawyer who defended Mr Asghar said and the case was really a property dispute and that his 69-year-old client is currently in very poor health facing death for a crime that was never committed.

Amnesty International's deputy Asia Pacific director Polly Truscott said: 'Mohammad Asghar is now facing the gallows simply for writing a series of letters. He does not deserve punishment. No one should be charged on the basis of this sort of conduct.



Read more: British pensioner facing three years in Pakistan jail after being tricked into reading the Koran in public | Mail Online
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

So did he or did he not write to the govt? How is that not prompting for action? Lastly how was a Schizophrenic patient allowed to do such thing without anyone watching over him? Alot of unanswered questions.....

The blasphemy complaint was brought against Mr Asghar by a tenant with whom he was having a dispute.

"As a result of a property dispute with one of his tenants, my father was jailed pending a trial. BBC News - Blasphemy case: Briton in Pakistan sentenced to death

So someone got angry and sent him to jail? Prob someone with connections...nothing really to do with Islam nor its laws, just some screwed up person with an ego and in power to misuse it...

Then we have this media saying:

Scores of people have been arrested in Pakistan under the country's blasphemy laws but death penalties are rarely carried out. BBC News - Blasphemy case: Briton in Pakistan sentenced to death

So basically this is like a law which people use to scare others?

Is it that simple to send people to jail in Pakistan, why hasnt Zardari been enrolled? Just curious he should have been shoved in without questions!

As for this newer case....It is sad to see people misuse a ridiculous law!

Oh 1 more thing that makes me want to laugh is the news itself...In UK when you are applying for a job you are categorized as British-Aisan to the specificity of which ethnicity Indian Asian or Pakistani Asian...But when controversy arises you become British! It is interesting for me...You are not a British for a job but if you need to hit the news headlines or malign something you suddenly become a full right British...Just found that funny for both cases!

 

[faisal6309]

Why was this thrown into the news? For an extra bonus?

I dont get what is wrong with reading the Quran? Did he bring his own version and started reading that in public? If that is the case there maybe some problem there...Did he get in brawl with authorities? I doubt you can tell if someone is Ahmedi just by asking him to read the Quran! Heck you cant even tell if one is Muslim or not if he reads the Quran...I have heard some non-Muslim scholars reading the Quran....no one threw them in jail!

I am guessing news is cutting off some other pieces of the puzzle!

What if he has his own version? Everyone now has their own version of meaning of everything.
Taliban and sects have their version of Shria. Every renown Aalim has their translation of Quran and so on.
But this news is hiding something.

 

[Dubious]

However, I dont agree with the law and here is an article of people who dont either:

​Pakistan sentences British paranoid schizophrenic to death for blasphemy — RT News

An elderly British man with paranoid schizophrenia who claimed he was the Prophet Mohammed has been sentenced to death in Pakistan under the country’s blasphemy laws.

Despite a long history of mental illness, Mohammad Asghar was convicted and sentenced Thursday in Rawalpindi, where he is currently being held at the high security Adiala Jail. His lawyers said he has attempted suicide and suffered a stroke while incarcerated at Adiala. He was arrested in 2010.

His defense, who submitted his health records in the case, say his illness explains the allegations that he told a tenant, who was renting a piece of property he owned in Pakistan, that he was the Prophet Mohammed.

His lawyers, who asked to stay anonymous based on the sensitivity associated with the blasphemy law, told the Daily Telegraph that they fear Asghar may attempt suicide once again.

"We want to stress that Mr. Asghar is in a suicidal state and that the authorities need to put him on suicide watch; he has suffered a stroke and has already tried to kill himself in prison."

A Pakistani medical board called Asghar mentally fit, clearing the way for the death penalty. He is to remain in jail for five years before he can appeal the decision.

Asghar, 71, was once sectioned under the Mental Health Act and was treated at Edinburgh’s Royal Victoria Hospital, where he was diagnosed.

In an affidavit for his defense, Dr. Jane McLennan, who has treated him, said his history of illness goes back to 1993. She said Asghar suffered a stroke in 2000, which exacerbated his condition and left him with facial palsy and a limp.

Not long before his 2010 arrest in Rawalpindi, Asghar was admitted to the Royal Victoria Hospital with“grandiose” paranoid delusions, believing former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and former US President George W. Bush had sent secret agents for him based on his opposition to the Iraq war. He also believed Pakistani and international media organizations had bugged his home.

Upon his release in March 2010, he left for Pakistan on heavy medication that Dr. McLennan said he unlikely continued. She said he was at high risk for suicide, offering to treat him in Edinburgh.

He was first arrested not long after leaving the hospital, when a tenant he was thought to be trying to evict from one of his properties gave police several unmailed letters in which Asghar claimed to be the Prophet.

Pakistan’s strict anti-blasphemy law prohibits such slander of any recognized religion. Penalties range from a fine to death. Many see the law as tool for misuse against Christians and other religious minorities in the predominantly Muslim nation.

"We cannot mention anything about Mr. Asghar's family; blasphemy is a very sensitive issue in Pakistan and we ask that our own names are kept out of the press for our own safety," one of Asghar's lawyers said.

Two top Pakistani politicians, Punjab Governor Salman Taseer and minorities minister Shahbaz Bhatti, were murdered in 2011 for opposing the law in defense of a Christian woman who had been sentenced to death for “insulting Islam.”

A spokeswoman for the British High Commission in Islamabad said it was aware of Asghar’s case and condition, but could not offer comment, AP reported.

Amnesty International has called for Asghar’s immediate release.

"At a time when Pakistan is reeling from a spate of abuses which perpetrators seek to justify as a defense of religious sentiments, reform of the blasphemy laws is more urgent than ever," said Amnesty International’s Deputy Asia-Pacific Director Polly Truscott.


They should release the poor man! What is wrong with some people?

 

[Umair Nawaz]

This is a slap in the face for those who were arguing with me few months ago that there is no law banning ahmadis from reading the Qur'an. But unfortunately you won't see any of those two faced cowards posting here. They usually go and hide and when they get caught out.



This news looks fake because it doesn't suit your view?

or it is ''true'' according to u because it suits yr fantasies?

British doctor, 72, beaten and jailed in PK after filmed reading the Koran

Old news and was debated.

@Aeronaut
@Jungibaaz please close the thread.