London: September 28, 2011. (PCP) An innocent spelling mistake has proved grounds enough for some Muslims to accuse a Christian of blasphemy. Sir Syed Girls’ High School in the Pakistan Ordnance Factories colony at Havelian, near Abbottabad, has taken the unusual step of accusing one of its students of blasphemy and expelling her after she misspelt a word whilst answering a question on a poem praising Prophet Muhammad. The school’s actions against eighth grader Faryal Bhatti have received the support of local Muslim leaders. According to media reports, Bhatti spelt out the word ‘laanat’, meaning ‘curse’, instead of ‘naat’, meaning ‘hymn’. The incident prompted local prayer leaders to condemn Bhatti’s error during their Friday sermons last week and demand action by the local authorities against the schoolgirl and her family. Male students of the school and religious leaders added to the outcry by holding a rally during which they reportedly demanded that criminal charges be brought against Bhatti and that she be forced to leave the community. It is believed that her expulsion from the school was aimed at calming tensions. Bhatti and her mother apologised for the mistake during a meeting of clerics and school teachers and assured that no harm had been intended. CLAAS UK Coordinator Nasir Saeed condemned the decision to expel Bhatti. “It is absolutely ridiculous that blasphemy charges could be brought against an eighth grade student because they made a spelling mistake in a class test,” he said. “The consequences of an innocent mistake have proved very serious for Faryal, who will now have to find another school and live with the stigma of being a blasphemer. “Her expulsion and the demands for criminal charges prove the extent to which the blasphemy law is being utterly misused in Pakistan and wreaking havoc in the lives of people who have done absolutely nothing wrong. “The government should condemn such overreactions and make it clear that the blasphemy law is not there to be misappropriated at the whim of extremists.”