Doctor arrested in Pakistan for committing blasphemy

Karachi, Dec 12 (ANI): A doctor has been arrested for allegedly committing blasphemy by insulting the Prophet Mohammed in Pakistan, in a second high profile case, throwing the spotlight on the country's controversial anti-blasphemy laws.

Naushad Valiyani was detained following a complaint by a medical representative, who visited the doctor in the city of Hyderabad.

"The arrest was made after the complainant told the police that Valiyani threw his business card, which had his full name, Muhammad Faizan, in a dustbin during a visit to his clinic," the Dawn quoted regional police chief Mushtaq Shah, as saying to a news agency.

"Faizan accused Valiyani of committing blasphemy and asked police to register a case against the doctor," he added.

Shah said the issue had been resolved after Valiyani, a member of Pakistan's Ismaili community, apologised, but local religious leaders intervened and pressed for action.

"Valiyani had assured Faizan that he did not mean to insult the Prophet Mohammed by throwing the visiting card in the dustbin," Shah said, adding that the police had registered a case under the Blasphemy Act.

Last month, a Pakistani court had sentenced to death Aasia Bibi, a Christian mother-of-five, on blasphemy charges.

Pakistan's noted human rights activist, Asma Jahangir, said that blasphemy laws were being misused in the country and caused negative impressions about the country abroad. (ANI)