by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) - In a move described as the “murder of justice,” a court in Pakistan on Tuesday sentenced a 22-year old Christian man to death after finding him guilty of an unsubstantiated charge of blasphemy, Morning Star News (MSN) reports.
Noman Masih was arrested during a night raid on his home June 29, 2019, and accused of showing blasphemous images of the Islamic prophet Mohammed to 9-10 people, MSN reports. Masih was subsequently charged under Section 295-C of Pakistan’s blasphemy statutes, which carries a mandatory death sentence.
Following trial at a court in Bahawalpur in January, a verdict of guilty and a sentence of death was handed down on May 30, MSN reports.
“I’m extremely disappointed by the conviction, because there was absolutely no case,” Masih’s attorney Lazar Allah Rakha told Morning Star News.
“There was no proof against Noman, and none of the witnesses produced by police could corroborate the blasphemy allegation against him. This is murder of justice,” Rakha said.
Noman’s father, sanitation worker Asghar Masih, said the family was shaken by the verdict but they were looking to God for help. “Noman’s mother and I yearn for him every day,” Asghar told Morning Star News. “Our hearts broke today when our counsel informed us about the death verdict. But our faith in Christ has not waivered, and we trust God that He will rescue us from this suffering.”
With notoriously harsh blasphemy laws, Islamic-majority Pakistan ranks 7th on the US Open Doors World Watch List 2023 of the top 50 countries where Christians are persecuted.