Fake witnesses issue to be called into question soon: SC

ISLAMABAD: During the hearing into an appeal in a ransom for kidnapping case on Thursday, Supreme Court judge Justice Asif Saeed Khosa hinted at reforms in the criminal justice system and remarked that fake witnesses would be punished soon. He said that courts would call such witnesses into question and the accused would be sent to jail.

Justice Khosa said that the justice system would improve if two or three fake witnesses would be given life sentence. He said that the judges who award sentences on fake evidence should also be brought to book. A three-member Supreme Court led by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa and comprising Justice Sardar Tariq Masood and Justice Mazhar Alam Miankhel, held hearing of an appeal of three death sentence accused in ransom for kidnapping case.

After examining the file of case and hearing of arguments of the counsels, Justice Asif Saeed Khosa remarked that the judge had no right to hold his seat if he could not deliver justice. He said that Allah orders in the Holy Quran to give true evidence but the witnesses do not speak the truth in the courts. He said that Allah orders in the Holy Quran to speak truth whether it would harm parents or relatives. But in every case in Punjab such fake witnesses are used and due to this the trial courts award death sentence to accused and the high court turns his death sentence into life imprisonment and then he is acquitted when the case lands in the Supreme Court, he remarked.

He further remarked that even a person on death bed speaks truth but in Punjab the same person gives fake declaration at that time against three or four people and implicates them in cases. He said that the judges of subordinate courts got written verdicts without studying case. He asked the judges of lower courts if only the judges of Supreme Court would be answerable to God and if they (judges) are to do this thing, they should shut the courts and the Supreme Court will itself continue to carry out such trials.

Justice Khosa said that he did not know how fake witnesses sleep well at night and added if they are not afraid of God. After completion of arguments of the counsels, the bench exonerated two death sentence accused namely Muhammad Israr and Ashfaq Ahmed, while appeal against the death sentence of Imran Ahmed was disposed of.