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AMENDMENTS TO THE BLASPHEMY LAWS ACT 2010

National Assembly of Pakistan

Amendments in Offences Related to Religion: Amendments in

the Pakistan Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code

Whereas the Constitution of Pakistan Article 25 provides for equal protection of all cit izensunder the law; whereas the founder of Pakistan, Quaid e Azam, Mohammad Ali Jinnahdeclared in his address to the First Constituent Assembly of Pakistan on 11th August 1947that all Pakistanis shall be equal under the law, this bill, in pursuit of these objectives seeks toamend the Pakistan Penal Code 1860 and Criminal Procedure Code 1898, in the followingways:

1. Short Title and Commencement: 1] This Act may be called the Review of theBlasphemy Laws Act, 2010. 2] It shall come into force at once.

2. In section 295 A of the Pakistan Penal Code the words, ten shall be deleted andthe word two be substituted.

3. In section 295 B of the Pakistan Penal Code the words, shall be punishable withimprisonment to life be deleted and the words, shall be punishable with imprisonment ofeither description for a term which may extend to five years, or with fine or with both besubstituted.

4. In section 295 C the words, shall be punished with death shall be deleted and thewords, shall be punishable with imprisonment of either description for a term which mayextend to ten years, or with fine or with both be substituted.

5. In sections 295 C, 298A of the Pakistan Penal Code after the word, Whoever, thewords maliciously, deliberately and intentionally be added.

6. In section 298B of the Pakistan Penal Code after the word or by visiblerepresentation, the words, maliciously, deliberately and intentionally be added.

7. A section 203 A be added to the Pakistan Penal Code to say, Anyone making afalse or frivolous accusation under any of the sections of 295A, 295B and 295C, of thePakistan Penal Code shall be punished in accordance with similar punishments prescribed inthe section under which the false or frivolous accusation was made.

8. A section 298 E shall be added to the Pakistan Penal Code saying, Any advocacy

of religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination or violence shall be punishablewith imprisonment of either description for a term which may extent to seven years, or withfine or with both.

9. In section 30 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), the words, as well asoffences falling under sections 295A, 295B and 295C of the Pakistan Penal Code, be addedafter the words, punishable with death.

10. Section 190 of the CrPC be amended and subsection (3) be added containing thewords, All offences falling within sections 295A, 295B and 295C of the Pakistan Penal Codeshall exclusively be taken cognizance of by the Court of Sessions and tried by the HighCourt.

11. Section 193 of the CrPC be amended to add, and as expressly provided forunder section 190 of the Code after the words, unless the case has been sent to it undersection 190, subsection (2).

12. In section 201 of the CrPC a Proviso be added after 201(2) to say, provided that

if a complaint is made in writing to a Magistrate under sections 295A, 295B and 295C of thePakistan Penal Code, he shall not take cognizance of it and forward it to the proper SessionsCourt with an endorsement to that effect and in case the complaint has not made in writing,such Magistrate shall direct the complainant to the proper Sessions Court.

13. Section 202 of the CrPC be amended to add subsection (5) to say,Notwithstanding anything contained in the preceding subsections any complaint made undersections section 295A, 295B and 295C of the Pakistan Penal Code shall be filed at and takencognizance of by a Court of Sessions and tried by the High Court, whereas the procedure laiddown in the preceding subsections shall be followed.

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14. Amendments to Schedule II of the Criminal Procedure Code shall be as follows:

Section Offence Warrantrequiredforarrest ornot?

Where awarrantor asummonsshallordinarilyissue in

the firstinstance

Bailableor Non-Bailableoffense

Compound-able or not

Punishmentunder thePakistan PenalCode

AppropriateCourt forTrial

295A Use ofderogatoryremarks, etcin respect ofholypersonage

Shallnotarrestwithoutwarrant

Warrant Bailable Notcompound-able

Imprisonmentof eitherdescriptionfor 2 years orfine or both(it was 2years beforeamendmentin 1991)

HighCourt

295 B Defiling etc.of copy ofHoly Quran

Ditto Ditto Non-bailable

Ditto Imprisonmentof eitherdescription

for 5 years orfine or both

HighCourt

295 C Use ofderogatoryremarks, etcin respect ofthe HolyProphet

Ditto Ditto Ditto Ditto Imprisonmentof eitherdescriptionfor 10 yearsor fine orboth

HighCourt

203 A Anyonemakingfalse orfrivolousaccusationsunder

sections295A, 295Band 295Cetc.

Mayarrestwithoutwarrant

Ditto Ditto Ditto Imprisonmentof eitherdescription for3 years or fineor both in caseaccusationmade under

295A;imprisonmentof eitherdescription for5 years or fineor both in caseaccusationmade undersection 295B;imprisonmentof eitherdescription for10 years orfine or both incaseaccusationmade undersection 295C.

Court ofSessions.

298 E Advocacy ofreligioushatred thatconstitutesincitement todiscriminationor violenceetc.

Mayarrestwithoutwarrant

Ditto Ditto Ditto Imprisonmentof eitherdescriptionfor sevenyears or withfine or both

Court ofSessions

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STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES AND REASONS

Amendments to the Blasphemy Laws are long overdue. These must include arationalization of punishments under the offences relating to religion. Vagueterminology in these laws has led to their wide mis-use for the persecution of others.The sentences must be reduced so that the incentive to use these laws to settlescores is taken away. Sentences that promote justice rather than open the doors toreligious persecution will be respected and applied properly, and it is these that mustbe rationalized in pursuit of Constitutional guarantees for protection of all citizensunder the law. The ascertainment of malicious intent must also be made whencharges are brought against an accused person. The absence of demonstratingpremeditation in all such charges has led to a widespread abuse of such laws, whereinnocent people have suffered trials and tribulations at the hands of their accuserswho use these laws to pressure the accused for personal or material gain. Theabsence of such a clause does not take into account the concept of mens rea, whichis central to procedures in all criminal offences.It is equally important that those making false or frivolous allegations under section295A, 295B and 295C of the Pakistan Penal Code must also be punished, as misuseof religion to harm others and put them through agony is a serious offence. The

Pakistan Penal Code must also be amended to include a new section for making anyadvocacy of religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination or violencean offence.The Pakistan Penal Code 1860 and the Criminal Procedure Code, 1898 are themajor statutes relating to criminal law in Pakistan. While the PPC deals in defining allthe offences and mentions their punishments, the Criminal Procedure Code acts as aprocedural law, providing machinery for the punishment of offenders against thesubstantive criminal law. The two codes are read together, and amendments to theCrPC are essential to ensure the effectiveness of amendments to the PPC. Any billseeking to make amendments that work for justice delivery on the ground mustamend these two statutory codes together.Amendments must be made in the Criminal Procedure Code to ensure protection ofPakistans minorities and vulnerable citizens, who routinely face judgments and

verdicts at the lower courts where mob pressure is often mobilized to obtain aconviction. It must be ensured that a court of Sessions take cognizance of an offencemade under sections 295A, 295B and 295C of the Pakistan Penal Code oncomplaints filed before it, so that the complainant takes full responsibility of theconsequences in case the accusations are false or frivolous. All complaints undersections 295 A, 295 B and 295 C should be made before a Court of Sessions andsubsequently tried by the High Court, because trials by High Courts are likely tostrengthen the possibility for justice. Given that the intent of this Bill is to avoidmiscarriages of justice in the name of Blasphemy, it should be the aim of a justsociety, as enshrined in our Constitution and Islam, to try all such cases at the HighCourts which are always under a higher degree of public scrutiny.Given that one of the principle tenets of Islam is to ensure justice to all, it isincumbent to therefore amend these man-made laws introduced in Pakistan by a

dictators Ordinance, without parliamentary consultation or public debate.

Member in ChargeSherry Rehman, MNA