ISLAMABAD: A host of a morning show aired by a private TV channel has been booked with four other people on charges of blasphemy.

The case was registered at the Margalla police station on Wednesday on a complaint of the chairman of the Namoos-i-Risalat Forum, Rao Abdul Rahim.

Mr Rahim, a lawyer, said that in one of her programmes the host had staged fake marriage of two men and two women and misused a song honouring the wedding of Hazrat Ali (RA) and Bibi Fatima (RA).

He said a complaint against the suspects was lodged with the police station in June but they refused to register the FIR.

Later, a petition was filed in the Islamabad High Court.

The IHC ordered the police to register the case but they took months to do so, the complainant said.

Police said the case had been registered under the Pakistan Penal Code’s section 295A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), 295C (use of derogatory remarks, etc., in respect of the Holy Prophet – peace be upon him) and 298A (use of derogatory remarks, etc., in respect of holy personages).

Published in Dawn, October 2nd, 2014