Jailed Christian Woman Accused Of Blasphemy Wins Release on Bail in Pakistan
by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent
LAHORE, PAKISTAN (Worthy News) – A high court in Pakistan has ordered the release “on bail” of a Christian woman who spent more than a year in prison on what rights activists say were false accusations of blasphemy against Islam.
Attorney Lazar Allah Rakha said the Lahore High Court ordered the conditional freeing of 29-year-old Stella Khawar, a mother of a five-year-old boy, after ruling there was “no evidence” supporting the charges.
The bail was issued Thursday, November 6, by Justice Asjad Javaid Ghural in two separate blasphemy cases filed against her, according to Christians familiar with the case.
Khawar was detained in May 2024 in Punjab Province’s Sialkot District after being accused of defacing currency notes with anti-Islamic writing. She was charged under Sections 295-A and 505 of Pakistan’s Penal Code, which carry prison terms of up to 10 years and seven years, respectively.
The court noted she was implicated “merely on suspicion,” and that police had failed to provide a forensic report of a grainy security camera video said to show her discarding the alleged material. The judge granted bail on statutory grounds, citing the slow pace of proceedings and lack of evidence.
RARE VICTORY
Khawar’s family is arranging surety bonds of 200,000 Pakistani rupees (about US $700) in each case for her release, Worthy News learned.
Human-rights advocates, including Alliance Defending Freedom International, which supported her defense, called the decision a rare victory in Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy system. Critics say the laws are often misused to target religious minorities or settle personal disputes in the Islamic nation.
Pakistan’s government recently announced procedural reforms to curb such abuses, but advocacy group Human Rights Watch says the laws continue to be “weaponized to incite mob violence and intimidate vulnerable communities.”
Pakistan ranks eighth on the Open Doors’ 2025 World Watch List of 50 countries where it says it is most difficult to be a Christian.
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