A Pakistani Christian man accused of blasphemy has been acquitted, Agenzia Fides reports.
Pervaiz Masih, who had been released on bail, was accused of blasphemy on 1st September, 2015, and was acquitted on 15th January this year following his trial, a representative of The Voice Society, an organisation which provides legal and social assistance to Christians has told the news organisation.
“Pervaiz was released, after three years in prison and suffering, because we showed that there was no evidence against him and his case was seriously addressed by the defence,” Aneeqa Maria Anthony, a lawyer and chief executive of the society, told Fides.
He said Masih and his family “suffered a lot” during the three years it took for the case to come to trial. That included the loss of his three-year-old daughter who, according to information provided to The Voice Society, may have been strangled to punish Masih and his family, as well as the beating and torture of Masih’s wife Zarina, during a police interrogation.
“On behalf of Pervaiz’s family, I want to thank all our partners and donors all over the world who supported this case with concrete help and prayers,” Anthony said.
Masih was arrested in the Kasur district of Punjab on 2nd September, 2015, for alleged blasphemy following a private dispute with a Muslim man, Haji Jamshed, concerning sale of construction material.
