Saturday, July 11, 2015

Pakistan: Lawyer threatened for defending blasphemy accused









A lawyer defending a ‘blasphemy accused’ says that he has been receiving threats with a warning to immediately withdraw from the case, according to sources.
Advocate Shahbaz Gurmani, who is representing Khalil Qadri in a blasphemy case, has sought a registration of the case against the suspects.
In an application to the Cantonment police SHO, Gurmani stated that the hearing was held in the court of Justice Shahbaz Ali Rizvi of the LHC Multan Bench, in connection with the FIR No 415/14 lodged under section 295-C on May 25, 2014 with the Shah Shams police station.
He said that a complainant had come to attend the hearing, but the court relisted the case. He further stated that some lawyers and a witness were standing there and he had heard one of them inquiring who the counsel was, and after that two of them had grabbed him and asked him to withdraw the case otherwise he would be killed.
He said he immediately asked a police constable who was performing his duty in courts to rescue him and the policeman helped him move away.
SHO Hyder Ali confirmed that the police had received the application but no case was registered till last reports came in.

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