The man, who worked at a hydro-power project in Dasu and was not identified by police for fear of reprisals, was accused by fellow workers last week of insulting the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

Blasphemy is punishable by death in Pakistan and though no one has ever been executed, numerous people have been lynched by outraged mobs after being accused, including a man in February and a Sri Lankan factory manager in 2021.

The court approved bail for the defendant on Thursday, regional police chief Imtiaz Ayub said. The court said it had granted bail because the alleged offence appeared to be “the result of a misunderstanding”.

It was not immediately clear when he will return to court to face trial.

A Pakistani governor and a minister have been killed in recent years for attempting to seek amendments to the blasphemy laws.

The alleged insult took place at the site of a hydropower project in the district of Kohistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Workers accused that man of using derogatory remarks against the prophet, police said.

China is a major ally and investor in Pakistan and its workers have on occasion been attacked by militants fighting the Pakistani government.

Militants were accused of a suicide bomb attack on a bus in 2021 that killed nine Chinese nationals working on the same hydropower project.

Rights groups say accusations of blasphemy are sometimes made to settle scores and hundreds of people are languishing in prison awaiting trial.