Maulana Tariq Masood, a well-known religious figure in Pakistan who once vehemently advocated for the “death penalty for blasphemy,” now finds himself at the center of blasphemy allegations and is on the run to escape enraged mobs.
A video of Masood recently went viral in which he can be heard saying, “Why do you follow the Prophet Muhammad when he couldn’t read or write?”
He continued, “The one (Muhammad) who presented the Quran didn’t write a single word himself and had others do it for him, which led to grammatical mistakes.”
Masood further claimed, “No corrections were made because Muhammad wasn’t aware of the grammatical errors, which remain in the Quran to this day.”
Notably, Masood had previously urged Muslims to immediately kill anyone who disrespected the Prophet or the Quran, without waiting for a court ruling.
Now, in contrast, he is asking for forgiveness, explaining that anyone can make mistakes and there are three ways to seek forgiveness, which he has already done and believes he should be pardoned.
Ironically, Masood had once stated, “Even if someone seeks forgiveness, we cannot judge if it’s genuine or superficial, and they should still face punishment according to blasphemy law.”
While in hiding, the Maulana has been releasing videos pleading for understanding, asking people to view his words in context, and seeking forgiveness.
