ABBOTTABAD:
It may have been a mere misplaced dot that led to accusations of blasphemy against a Christian eighth-grader, whose miniscule error led to her expulsion from school and uproar amongst local religious leaders.
Faryal Bhatti, a student at the Sir Syed Girls High School in
Pakistan Ordnance Factories (POF) colony Havelian, erroneously misspelt a
word in an Urdu exam while answering a question on a poem written in
praise of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). The word in question was ‘laanat’
instead of ‘naat’ – an easy error for a child to make, as the written
versions of the words are similar.
According to the school administration and religious leaders who took
great exception to the hapless student’s mistake, the error is
‘serious’ enough to fall within the realm of blasphemy, Saturday.
Spelling out her punishment
On Thursday, Faryal’s Urdu teacher was collecting the answer sheets
from her students when she noticed the apparently offensive word on her
pupil’s sheet. The teacher, Fareeda Bibi, reportedly summoned the
Christian girl, scolded her and beat her. Her punishment, however, did
not end here. When Faryal’s class fellows learnt of the alleged
blasphemy, the teacher brought the principal’s notice to the matter, who
further informed the school management.
In the meanwhile, the news spread throughout the colony. The next
day, male students of the POF colony school as well as certain religious
elements took out a rally, demanding the registration of a criminal
case against the eighth-grader and her expulsion from the area.
Prayer leaders within the community also condemned the incident in
their Friday sermons, asking the colony’s administration to not only
take action against Faryal but her entire family. In the wake of the
increasing tensions, Managing Director POF Colony Havelian Asif Siddiki
called a meeting of colony-based ulemas and school teachers to discuss
the situation. The girl and her mother were asked to appear before the
meeting, where they explained that it was a mere error, caused by a
resemblance between the two words. The two immediately apologised,
adding that Faryal had no malicious intentions.
In a move that was apparently meant to pacify the religious elements clamouring for action against the teenage ‘blasphemer’,
the POF administration expelled her from the school on Saturday. Faryal
was not the only one who got in trouble for her spelling error,
however, as her mother, Sarafeen Bhatti, who was a staff nurse at the
POF Hospital Havelian for several years, was immediately transferred to
POF Wah Cantonment Hospital.
Decision applauded
While talking to The Express Tribune, Maulana Alla Dita
Khateeb of Gol Masjid praised the decision of the POF colony
administration, claiming that he had personally seen the answer sheet in
question. He further went on to say that he had met the girl himself,
who had apologised for the word used in error. Asked whether the
incident still fell within the realm of blasphemy and whether Faryal
deserved expulsion when she had misspelt the word unintentionally,
Khateeb said that although he was unclear about the intentions of the
girl, the word she had used was sacrilegious.
The managing director of POF Colony was not available for comment.
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