PHC suspends death sentence of two militancy convicts

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Thursday stayed the execution of two militancy convicts by suspending their death sentence awarded by a military court on account of different acts of terrorism.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth and Justice Abdul Shakoor Khan suspended the death sentence of Pir Syed Ameer Faisal from Hangu district and Asif from Shabqadar tehsil of Charsadda district.

The court also issued notice to the federal government through Ministry of Defence to submit record of the cases before January 31 when the next hearing of the petitions would take place.

In the revision petition filed by a relative of the convict, Pir Syed Ameer Faisal, the lawyer Shabbir Hussain Gigyani submitted that the convict was picked by the law-enforcing agencies from his house on November 3, 2011.

He said his family members lodged an FIR under section 365 of PPC at the Hangu Police Station against the security forces for his abduction on the order of the Commission on Missing Persons, Islamabad.

He stated that the family also filed habeas corpus petition in the high court for his safe recovery.

In reply to the petition, the law-enforcing agencies admitted that he had been shifted to an internment centre in Kohat.

He said a few days ago his family members came to know that he had been awarded death sentence by a military court and therefore challenged it in the court.

The same PHC bench also stayed the execution of a militancy convict Asif who was awarded death sentence by a military court. The lawyer argued that according to his relatives, the security forces picked the convict, Asif, on June, 9, 2016 from his house in Shabqadar in Charsadda.

Later, he said the FIR was also lodged at Shabqadar Police Station against the security forces on the order of the Commission on Missing Persons.

He said that the convict was later shifted to Kohat internment centre.

He said that in 2019 his family members came to know that he was awarded death sentence by a military court.

The lawyer maintained that the military courts awarded death sentence to both the convicts on terrorism charges without giving them a chance of free trial.

He said his family didn’t know the charges against him that led to the award of death sentence.