Islamabad, Oct 4 (IANS) A Pakistani judge granted bail to a brothel owner on the condition that she attends daily classes at a mosque for a month, a ruling that prompted a leading daily to note that “spiking the legal with the moral” was a “mixture too heady even for these times of most ingenious experiments”.
“Pure in name and known for its abstinence, Pakistan must nevertheless attract attention for the variety of cocktails it offers. But this one has the potency to send the whole bar into a spin,” said an editorial in the Dawn Thursday.
“The instance where an honourable judge seeks to spike the legal with the moral makes for a mixture too heady even for these times of most ingenious experiments,” it added.
Peshawar High Court chief justice Monday granted bail to a woman accused of running a brothel.
“A new benchmark in the treatment of the accused was set when the respected judge referred her to a certain imam sahib of a certain mosque in Hayatabad – in recognition of the respected cleric’s ability to correct the wayward.
“The accused was asked to attend daily reformative classes at the mosque for a month, and no less a moral keeper than the local SHO was directed to make sure the accused successfully completed the course,” said the daily.
The editorial caustically noted: “This is reformative justice and this is progress -true Pakistan style, may we add.”
“An example has been set against the old retributive model and for using the clerics effectively beyond their traditional role.”
