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Pakistani leader: Rushdie a 'blasphemer'

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, June 21 (UPI) -- Anger over the British knighthood awarded author Salman Rushdie drew more criticism in Pakistan Thursday, with another politician making violent threats.

The speaker of the Punjab provincial assembly, Afzal Sahi, called Rushdie a "blasphemer," Geo TV reported. Sahi said he would be ready to kill Rushdie if their paths crossed.

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Rushdie spent years in hiding after publication of a novel, "The Satanic Verses," which many Muslim leaders considered blasphemous. The Ayatollah Khomeini, then the spiritual and political leader of Iran, issued a fatwa calling for his assassination.

During a debate in the assembly, Punjab Chief Minister Pervez Elahi blasted former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. She has called for the firing of Federal Religious Affairs Minister Ijazul Haq.

Haq has said his remarks about the knighthood causing suicide bombings were a prediction, not a threat or a justification.

The British government has asked for a transcript of his exact remarks, the Press Trust of India reported.

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