A Rawalpindi court has handed down a landmark verdict in a blasphemy and desecration of the Holy Quran case, sentencing five convicts to death, life imprisonment, and a total of 80 years in jail.

The court also imposed a collective fine of Rs 6.5 million on the convicts.

The ruling was delivered by Additional District and Sessions Judge Tariq Ayub, who declared that the convicts were guilty of committing a heinous crime and did not deserve any leniency.

The court ordered that the convicts “be hanged” by neck until death.

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The convicts — Muhammad Arsalan, Ali Abbas, Faisal Rehan, Khurram Afzal and Zunair Sikandar — were charged under a case registered by the FIA Cyber Crime Wing.

The verdict was announced amid tight security, with a large number of lawyers and citizens present in the courtroom.

Following the decision, all five convicts were escorted under heavy security to Adiala Jail.