A Pakistani cleric who once vocally advocated for putting anyone charged with blasphemy to death is forced into hiding after being accused of blasphemy due to his remarks about the Prophet Muhammad and the Quran.
Pak Mufti Tariq Masood, once calling for strict punishment under blasphemy laws, now humbly asks for forgiveness after insulting Prophet.
Irony just filed a blasphemy complaint!pic.twitter.com/uKMrXfFlBQ— Pakistan Untold (@pakistan_untold) September 23, 2024
Mufti Tariq Masood is reportedly on the run and fearing for his life after a video of him went viral in Pakistan, where he allegedly questioned some parts of the Quran and even claimed that the Prophet Muhammad was illiterate and had to use scribes to write down the Islamic holy book.
“The person (Prophet Mohammad) who is presenting the Quran did not write even a single word and got it written by others,” Masood said, further claiming that scribes helped write the Quran when it was revealed as the Prophet Muhammad "did not know how to read and write."
Masood did not stop there and further pointed out what he believes are flaws in the Quran. The cleric elaborated that because the Prophet Muhammad was illiterate and had to rely on others to document the Quran, he did not notice the grammatical errors that still allegedly exist today.
Kill him
— DoctorSheerazPT (@SHEERAzDOC) September 21, 2024
For instance, Masood argued that Iqra Bismil, a chapter or a surah in the Quran where Allah advised strict punishment for kufir or disbelief, has semantic errors in the use of letters, with the cleric calling it a “grave error.”
The cleric was also seen addressing a gathering of people, where he said in his speech that even though some people might have different views, others choose to listen to them because they are scholars, while further claiming the Prophet Muhammad lacked any scholarly wisdom.
“We follow the Japanese and listen to their speeches because they are literate…some are PhD scholars, some are scientists but our Prophet did not know how to read or write. He did not write a word by himself but rather called sahafis (writers) like Zaid and others to write it for him and since he did not know how to write, there were grammatical errors and he never noticed them and the errors still exist,” Masood said.
Hiding in kafir country to protect himself from Allah lovers
— Asoka “No Thought has Power Until You Believe It" (@asoka_in) September 26, 2024
Masood’s remarks ignited a firestorm of outrage in Pakistan, and his statements have been met with fierce backlash, particularly from Shia clerics and activists from the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region. They have called for legal action against the cleric, saying that his statements were blasphemous.
He quickly tried to clarify his statements following intense outrage over his remarks, claiming that “this was all part of a propaganda campaign against him,” referring to the accusations of blasphemy made against him. He also said his comments had been taken out of context, and while he posted apology videos, Masood apologized for hurting people’s sentiments but did not claim he was wrong.
Ironically, Masood once advocated for the death penalty as punishment for those accused of blasphemy, and even said that those who apologize for blasphemy should be put to death.
It’s more than enough to keep us distracted from our real problems . We have become a nation of buffoons
— Ibrahim (@IbrahimAMCC) September 23, 2024
"Even if someone has apologized, we cannot say whether it is from the heart or just for show, so he should be punished according to the blasphemy law." the cleric said in his earlier statements.
Masood also ignited controversy for some misogynistic and racist statements. He once claimed that immodest women caused the COVID-19 pandemic and described Hindus as mostly “black-skinned” people.
