Imam held in Pakistan Quran burning case

ISLAMABAD -- A Muslim cleric is accused of stashing pages of a Quran in a Christian girl's bag to make it seem as if she burned the Islamic holy book, a surprising twist in a case that caused an international outcry over the country's strict blasphemy laws.

Khalid Chishti was arrested late Saturday after a member of the cleric's mosque accused the imam of planting evidence as a way to push the Christians out of the neighborhood. Chishti, led to court in shackles, wearing a white blindfold Sunday, denied the charges.

"I have not done anything wrong. This is all fabrication," he defiantly told reporters.

The imam's arrest could release the girl, who supporters say is mentally disadvantaged, from prison, where she faces a life sentence if convicted of desecrating the Quran. A bail hearing was scheduled today.

Christians who fled the neighborhood when the girl was arrested worry about the use of laws that critics say are often abused to settle scores or target minorities.

"We all are suffering," said Somera Ashraf, a Christian woman from the girl's neighborhood. Ashraf and her family fled the neighborhood with many other Christians when the blasphemy allegations came to light, fearing retribution. She returned only recently but still doesn't feel safe.

Police said Chishti planted pages of a Quran in a shopping bag containing burned papers and ash that had been carried by the girl. The bag was then submitted as evidence to the police.

The case has shone an uncomfortable spotlight on the punishments for violating Pakistan's blasphemy laws and caused an uproar, largely because of the girl's age and questions about her mental capacity. The girl's supporters say she is 11 years old and has Down syndrome; a medical board said she was about 14 and that her mental age didn't match her physical age.