The National Assembly has passed legislation that imposes life imprisonment for insulting the Holy Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) companions, family, and wives.
The bill was presented by Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) MNA, Maulana Abdul Akbar Chitrali, during the session of the lower house chaired by Speaker Raja Pervez Ashraf.
The bill was met with unanimous approval by the members. Under the new law, those found guilty of insulting the Holy Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) companions, family, and wives will face a minimum of 10 years imprisonment, with a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
This marks an increase from the previous maximum punishment of 3 years.
In a separate development, on Monday, the Senate unanimously passed a resolution that made the teachings of the Holy Quran with translation, tajweed, and tafseer mandatory for all university students.
The resolution stipulated that the teachings should not be made part of examinations for the provision of additional marks. This way, the focus of the students would remain on the acquisition of learning and knowledge of the Holy Quran.
Another resolution was unanimously passed by the Senate, recommending imparting the Seerat of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to youngsters.
