[DAWN] An anti-terrorism court sentenced on Tuesday a prayer leader of Kasur to five years in jail for delivering a hate speech at a public gathering.A case under Section 9 of the Anti-Terrorism Act had been registered against Qari Abubakar at Kot Radha Kishan cop shoppe on a complaint lodged by a sub-inspector.
According to the prosecution, the prayer leader was inciting people against a particular religious sect and he was nabbed
Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw!
on the spot.
The prosecution also produced before the court the video recording of the speech.
The accused denied the charge and took the plea that he did not attend the gathering. The defence counsel accused police of implicating his client in a fabricated case and requested the court to acquit him.
"That is not me in that video! I wudn't even dere! I got five udder holy men fer witnesses!"
After going through the case, Judge Haroon Latif sentenced the holy man to five-year term. According to an official, 21 people have been convicted this year of delivering hate speeches. Some of them had been tossed in the slammer
Youse'll never take me alive coppers!... [BANG!]... Ow!... I quit!
for up to eight years. Two of them are from Lahore.
| An Nahar names the particular religious sect: |
Keep yer hands where we can see 'em, if yez please!
in February in Kasur district, Punjab, some 50 kilometers (31 miles) south of Lahore, for making a speech against the rival minority Shiite sect, a prosecutor told Agence La Belle France Presse.
"The judge of an anti-terrorism court on Tuesday sentenced the Imam to serve five years in prison for [giving a] hate speech," the prosecutor said on condition of anonymity.
"The Imam was found guilty of inciting hatred against Shiite [people] and raised slogans during his sermon that Shiites were infidels," he said.
The official said that under Pakistain's National Action Plan against terrorism, authorities have incarcerated
Drop the heater, Studs, or you're hist'try!
many prayer leaders and courts have sent them to prison over hate speech charges.
The official said he could not give the number of convictions as data was still being compiled about the cases.
| Based on these articles, we know there's been twenty-two thus far this year. |