Wednesday, November 26, 2014

Bollywood Actress Veena Malik Sentenced to 26 Years in Jail for Blasphemy after Appearing in Mock TV Wedding Scene

THE INDEPENDENT: The GEO TV programme sparked a wave of controversy in the Islamic country when it aired in May, despite the fact similar scenes had been aired in the past

Veena Malik has expressed her anger and disbelief after she was handed a 26-year jail term by a Pakistani anti-terrorism court for ‘malicious acts’ of blasphemy.

Her crime? Appearing in a pretend wedding scene, staged on a daytime show broadcast by Geo TV and based on the marriage of the Prophet Mohamed’s daughter.

The programme sparked a wave of controversy in the Islamic country when it aired in May, despite the fact similar scenes had been aired in the past to little or no such public outrage. Some even apparently suspected that Pakistan’s military were behind the mock wedding, and that it was put on in a bid to wage a blasphemy war against the broadcaster. » | Jenn Selby | Wednesday, November 26, 2014