SHC dismisses appeal of man convicted in kidnapping for ransom case

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Wednesday dismissed the appeal of a man convicted in a kidnapping for ransom case.

The appellant, Adnan Hussain, was sentenced to life imprisonment and handed down other sentences by an anti-terrorism court which found him guilty of kidnapping a man for ransom and injuring his friend in Korangi. According to the prosecution, the appellant along with absconding co-accused kidnapped Mohammad Younus Qureshi and his friends Abdul Aziz and Atif and robbed them.

The prosecution further alleged that the appellant later released Qureshi’s two friends after injuring them. They took Qureshi hostage and demanded a ransom of Rs250,000 from his family.

The appellant took Qureshi to his mother’s house for receiving the ransom. He was, however, captured by people of the area when he was trying to flee after collecting the ransom. The people also found a pistol on him.

The appellant’s counsel submitted that his client was falsely implicated in the case due to political rivalry and all witnesses produced by the prosecution were fake. He submitted that the prosecution had failed to prove charges against the appellant and requested the high court to set aside the trial court order. A deputy prosecutor general submitted that the prosecution had proved its case against the appellant without any shadow of doubt and the case was supported by reliable witnesses.

He submitted that eyewitnesses had identified the appellant in the identification parade and requested the high court to dismiss the appeal. A division bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha, after hearing the arguments and perusal of evidence, observed that the prosecution had proved its case against the appellant beyond any reasonable doubt and witnesses had identified the appellant along with supportive evidence. The high court dismissed the appeal.