An Islamabad district and sessions court has sentenced two individuals to death for sharing religiously offensive content on social media.
The verdict was delivered by additional sessions judge of Islamabad after a trial that began following their arrest in 2021.
According to the court ruling, both accused were handed the death penalty under Section 295-C of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and fined Rs500,000 each. They were also sentenced to life imprisonment under Section 295-B, three years of imprisonment, and a Rs100,000 fine under Section 298-A.
Additionally, the accused were given seven years of imprisonment and a Rs100,000 fine under Section 11 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA).
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The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Cyber Crime Wing had registered a case against the accused in 2021, leading to their prosecution.
A few days ago also, an anti-terrorism court sentenced four individuals to death for allegedly spreading religious hatred on social media.
The convicts, identified as Rana Usman, Ashfaq Ali, Salman Sajjad, and Wajid Ali, were found guilty under Section 11 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA). The accused were also charged under sections 295-A, 295-B, 295-C, 298-A, 34 and 109 of the Pakistan Penal Code.
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Additional Sessions Judge Muhammad Tariq Ayub delivered the verdict, which also included a 10-year prison sentence and a fine of Rs1 million each for the accused.
The case, registered in October 2022, highlighted the severity of using digital platforms to incite religious discord and violence. The accused were sentenced on charges of disseminating allegedly blasphemous content through certain Facebook pages they were said to be operating.
