SHC sets aside death sentence in polio worker killing case

The Sindh High Court on Thursday set aside the death sentence of a convict in a polio worker’s killing. Afsar Khan was sentenced to death by an anti-terrorism court on December 6, 2017 for murdering the polio team worker in Sohrab Goth.

According to the prosecution, the appellant had been arrested by police on charges of murdering polio eradication program worker Umar Farooq on December 17, 2012. The appellant’s counsel, Syed Mehmood Alam Rizvi, submitted that the appellant had no motive to kill Farooq as there was evidence that the victim was a polio worker; besides, eyewitnesses were untrustworthy and their statements could not be relied upon to punish the appellant on charges.

He submitted that the prosecution failed to prove charges against the appellant as evidence contradicted the medical evidence and the case did not fall within ambit of the Anti-Terrorism Act.

The additional prosecutor general submitted that the prosecution had proved its case beyond any reasonable doubt and prosecution witnesses, including eyewitnesses, supported the prosecution case.

A division bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha, after hearing the arguments of the counsel and perusal of the evidence, observed that confession of the appellant before the police was inadmissible. The court observed that the prosecution failed to prove any motive for the killing and the identification of the appellant by the eyewitnesses was doubtful as their statements were recorded eight days after the arrest of the appellant and there was an unexplained nine months’ delay after the incident.

The court observed that there were neither reliable, trustworthy or confidence inspiring direct oral evidence against the appellant nor the circumstantial evidence to link the appellant in the murder case. The court observed that prosecution had failed to prove charges against the appellant and set aside the death sentence awarded to him by the trial court.