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Friday March 29, 2024

Execution of death row convict stopped for a day

Defence counsel says heirs of dual murder victims need time to file a compromise application

By Jamal Khurshid
May 28, 2015
Karachi
The Sindh High Court suspended on Wednesday the execution warrant of a death row convict in a dual murder case till May 29.
The orders came on a petition filed by Mohammad Nadeem, the brother of the convict, Shahid Mehmood.
Mehmood was sentenced to death by an anti-terrorism court after finding him guilty of murdering a woman, Shamim, and her daughter, Nadia, on September 17, 1998.
The court had also sentenced him to 10 years in prison for committing a robbery at the house of his victims.
According to the prosecution, Mehmood and his accomplice Mohammad Khab had entered the house ASI Ghulam Mujtaba at Police Line, Napier and killed his spouse and daughter while committing a robbery.
The SHC and the Supreme Court had dismissed his appeals in August 1999 and May 2000.
Khawaja Naveed Ahmed, the counsel for the petitioner, submitted that the anti-terrorism court had issued a black warrant for the execution of the convict on May 28.
He submitted that the heirs of the victims were ready to file a compromise application before the court which may take some time.
When the court asked that why the heirs were not present in the court, the counsel said they resided in Punjab and the application would filed within two days. He requested the court to stay the execution for two days so that the application could be filed.
An SHC division bench headed by Justice Ahmed Ali M Sheikh, after the preliminary hearing of the petition, issued notices to the Sindh advocate general, the prosecutor general and others suspended the warrant till May 29.

Detention cases
The high court issued notices to the federal and provincial law officers on similar petitions filed against the alleged illegal detention of citizens by the law enforcement agencies.
Mohammad Fahad Khan, Kiran Naz, Majid Noor Sheikh, Farheen Farid, Fahadullah Khan and Shamsun Nisa had filed similar petitions against the detention of their relatives, Mohammad Faiq, Danish Sanobar, Wajid Noor, Fareeduddin, Zohaibullah Khan, Imran, Adnan and Shah Mohammad.
These people, according to the petitioners, were taken away from Manghopir, Shah Faisal Colony, Azizabad, North Nazimabad, Korangi and New Karachi areas.
Majid Noor submitted that his brother, Wajid Noor, a private factory employee and a resident of Azizabad, was detained by the Rangers along with 58 others during a raid at the Muttahida Qaumi Movement headquarters, Nine Zero.
He said his brother had nothing to do with any political party and he was residing at his in-laws’ house in the area.
Petitioner Farheen said that her husband Fareeuddin, an employee of the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, was missing for two days.
Shamsun Nisa said her sons, Imran, Adnan and Shah Mohammad, were arrested by the Khawaja Ajmer Nagri police without any FIR.
An SHC division bench headed by Justice Naimatullah Phulpoto, after the preliminary hearing of the petitions, issued notices to the federal and provincial law officers, the home secretary, the IGP and others, seeking their comments.
Registration of murder case
The high court dismissed an application seeking the registration of a murder case against paramilitary soldiers for killing a man at Nagan Chowrangi last year.
Zeeshanuddin was killed when Rangers had opened fire on him while he was arguing with his estranged wife near Nagan Chowrangi on February 28.
Police had registered a case against soldier Noor Rehman under Section 319 of the Pakistan Penal Code that relates to the punishment for unintentional murder.
The victim’s sister, Tasneem Shahid, had subsequently gone to the high court to seek directives for police to register a case under Section 302 of the PPC, arguing that it was a case of premeditated murder.