Mohaqiq Nasab, editor-in-chief of Hoqooq Zan, or Women’s Rights, was detained on last Thursday on instructions from a religious adviser to Western-backed President Hamid Karzai, the official said.

Fazel Sangcharaki, a deputy minister at the ministry of information and culture, said he did not know the name of the adviser but Karzai’s religious adviser is Mohaiuddin Baloch, who could not immediately be reached comment.

Sangcharaki said Nasab’s arrest was technically illegal as the government-appointed media commission to question him before deciding whether he deserved to be jailed or freed. He said the editor should be handed over to the commission.

In his article, the 50-year-old Nasab questioned the need for harsh Islamic punishment for apostates, thieves and others, Sangcharaki said.