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Pak to challenge murder conviction overturned in Daniel Pearl case
The government has also disallowed the release of the three co-accused in the case who were set free by the high court judgment announced on Thursday. All have been detained for three months under the Maintenance of Public Order ordinance.
Pakistan will appeal in the Supreme Court the decision by the Sindh High Court to set aside the death sentence awarded to Ahmad Omar Saeed Shaikh, the man found guilty of kidnapping and murdering Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in 2002.
The government has also disallowed the release of the three co-accused in the case who were set free by the high court judgment announced on Thursday. All have been detained for three months under the Maintenance of Public Order ordinance.
A press statement issued by the Pakistan government on Friday stated that it was
“well aware of the facts of the judgement issued by the Honorable Sindh High Court in Daniel Pearl case, dated 2nd April 2020.”
The statement added: “the Federal Government is concerned about the decision however, as per constitutional scheme of things prosecution in criminal matters is a provincial subject, therefore similar concern has been shared with the Government of Sindh.”
It added “With reference to this, the Government of Sindh has decided to file an appeal next week against the said judgement in the Honorable Supreme Court of Pakistan in order to ensure that the ends of justice are met. Government of Pakistan has asked Government of Sindh to dedicate its best resources in the pursuance of appeal before the Honorable Supreme Court of Pakistan.”
The statement said that the Government of Sindh “has been advised to consult the Attorney General for Pakistan in the matter as well. In the meantime, all the accused in the said case have been arrested and detained under Section 3(1) of the West Pakistan Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance, 1960 for a period of 3 months pending filing of the appeal in the apex court. Ministry of Interior, Government of Pakistan reiterates its commitment to follow due process under the laws of the country to bring terrorists to task.”
The move comes a day after the Sindh High Court on Thursday overturned the murder conviction of Ahmed Omer Saeed Sheikh and instead found Sheikh guilty of the lesser charge of kidnapping and sentenced him to seven years in prison.
Saeed has already spent 18 years in prison on death row. The seven-year sentence was expected to be counted as time served, said Khawaja Naveed, his lawyer.
A two-judge bench, headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha, announced the verdict on the appeals filed by the convicts 18 years ago after hearing arguments and examining the record and proceedings of the case.
The SHC further dismissed an appeal of the state seeking enhancement of life term of three co-accused.
While arguing the case, the lawyers for the appellants, Rai Bashir and Khawaja Naveed Ahmed, had submitted that the prosecution had miserably failed to prove its case against their clients beyond any reasonable doubt and prosecution witnesses were mostly policemen, whose testimonies could not be relied upon.
