Pak court rejects blasphemy plea against journo Hamid Mir

An Islamabad court has dismissed a plea for including blasphemy charge brought against journalist and author Hamid Mir, said a release yesterday.

Additional Session Judge Raja Asif Mehmood passed the order.

Lawyer Tariq Asad had filed the application on behalf of one Hafiz Ehtasham from Lal Masjid, following a column Mir wrote in Urdu daily Jang on June 16 this year.

His write-up was against honour killing and Mir had given a reference of Hazrat Khadeeja (wife of Prophet Muhammad, PBUH) who was a working woman and sent a proposal of marriage to the Prophet on her own will.

Some religious extremists started a campaign against Hamid Mir in local newspapers as well as on social media and demanded an apology from him.

And then Hafiz Ehtasham moved an application in a police station in Islamabad against Hamid for the registration of blasphemy case. Islamabad police investigated it and concluded that Mir never committed any blasphemy.

Ehtasham then moved an application against police in the Islamabad court to record a case against Mir. Subsequently, the court dismissed the application.

Hamid Mir is an occasional contributor to The Daily Star.