Month: April 2018

Karachi: The Supreme Court on (SC) on Tuesday acquitted AsmaNawab, MohammadFarhan and Javed Ahmed Siddiqui who were awarded capital punishments in the case pertaining to murder of Asma’s father, mother and a brother.

The apex court bench, headed by Justice AsifSaeedKhosa and comprising Justice MushirAlam and Justice MazharAlam Khan Miankhel, was hearing the appeal filed by the convicts against the death penalties handed by the Anti-Terrorism Court for allegedly killing Asma’s father Nawab Ahmed, mother Abrar Begum and brother AsifNawab some two decades ago.

The convicts through their counsels challenged their punishments in the apex court after the Sindh High Court had upheld the judgment of the trial court. They contended that they were innocent and the charges labeled against them were baseless. The court was requested to set aside the convictions of the suspects and order their release.

After hearing the arguments from sides, the prosecution and defence, the apex court bench annulled the decision of the ATC and ordered that the convicts should be released, if not arrested in any other case.

The court observed that the prosecution had failed to establish its charges as the evidences put forward before it were not sufficient. The police use to arrest the accused persons but remain unable to prove the charges in the court. “The accused persons were behind the bars for last 20 year which is itself a punishment,” Justice Khosa remarked.

According to the prosecution, Asma, who was a teenager at the time of offence, in connivance with her alleged lover Farhan and their partner Javed had killed her parents and brother on December 30, 1998 in Malir area of the city as her family members were opposing her marriage with Farhan.

The ATC heard the case for nearly a year and found all the accused persons guilty of the offence, awarding capital punishments to them. The fourth accused MohammadWaseem was given 10 years imprisonment by the trial court for ‘facilitating’ the murders.

The convicts had challenged their punishments in the high court just after the verdict of the trial court in 1999.

The SHC division bench, comprising Justice Ali Sain Din Maitlo and Justice Dr. Rana M Shamim, had given the split verdict in 2009. One of the judges of the bench had acquitted the convicts whereas other upheld their death penalties.

After the division bench’s split verdict, then SHC Chief Justice Anwar ZaheerJamali had appointed Justice Abdul RasoolMemon to decide the matter as a referee judge who had also upheld the trial court’s verdict after hearing the case for almost six years.

KARACHI: A man was killed in a domestic quarrel in Hazara Goth area of the metropolis on Tuesday.

According to reuse sources, a 55-year-old man, Abdul Samad was shot dead over some family dispute in Hazara Goth.

The body was shifted to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center for treatment.

Karachi: Judicial activism goes inevitable in societies where governments and assemblies go dysfunctional and politicians become corrupt, said Pasban e Pakistan President AltafShakoor.

In a statement here Tuesday, he said taking suomoto actions by the apex courts is now irking some political parties and politicians, because they know that if the ongoing action against corrupt people continued their own skin could not be saved. He said the politicians are not playing their due role, assemblies are virtually rubber stamps and the government does not deliver; under these circumstances who would dole out justice to the poor masses.

AltafShakoor said the judicial activism is as per the provisions of the constitution and it is in the larger interest of the poor Pakistani masses, who are continually being neglected by the rulers. He said elections have become a musical chairs’ game. The main political parties are strongly opposing the proportionate electorate system because they know that this system would bring a true democracy in Pakistan and break the monopoly of a few political families who are treating this country as their fiefdom.

Pasban leader said it is the apex judiciary that has taken steps to give people rid of the contaminated water and resolve other issues like school fees and admissions in medical colleges. He said in fact the judicial activism of the apex courts is the only hope for poor Pakistanis. He said it is true that the corrupt politicians, ineffective legislators, and nonfunctioning administration have, themselves, given their space to the judiciary for taking suomoto actions. He said had these institutions played their due role the judiciary would not have felt any need to going for this pro-people activism. He said people of Pakistan have warmly welcomed the ongoing suomoto notices and hope that this process would continue till making this country and nation stand on its two feet.

AltafShakoor appealed to the apex judiciary to take notice of the evil conspiracies of the corruption mafia and take them to the task and ensure shifting of the looted money of this country back home from foreign banks accounts and illegal assets.

He said we are spending more than half of our budget on foreign loans and their interests and if the looted money is brought back, this poor nation would be able to pay back all its foreign loans and become a financially independent nation. He said presently we are an enslaved nation, financially, due to the misdeeds of our corrupt rulers and politicians. He said Pasban e Pakistan fully supports the judicial activism and considers it as a logical result of the dysfunctional administration and lackluster assemblies in Pakistan.

KARACHI: Karachi police on Tuesday claimed to have arrested four street criminals form different areas of the city.

According to police sources, two robbers, Hassan and Zohaib, were allegedly looting cash, cell phones and other valuables at gunpoint from a citizen, Danish, and his wife. Receiving information, a police party reached the spot and arrested them.

Police said that the arrested robbers were the residents of Korangi No-4 and involved in several other robbery cases. Police also recovered looted property, one pistol and a motorcycle from their possession. New Karachi police apprehended two wanted street criminals, Abass and Musa, from New Karachi Industrial area.

The police have recovered 45 cell phones and two bikes from them.

Karachi: PakistanTehreek e Insaf has planned to hold ‘eliminate corruption –bring prosperity’ rallies in whole Sindh province, said PTI Sindh leader HaleemAdil Sheikh on Tuesday.

According to details, PTI Sindh chapter held a ‘Caravan e Istaqbal Imran Khan’ rally from Karachi to interior Sindh, which was attended by a large number of leaders and workers.

The rally led by PTI Sindh leader HaleemAdil Sheikh reached from Karachi to Khipro via Hyderabad and Mirpurkhas. It was warmly welcomed by the PTI workers and masses in different cities of towns of its route.

However, another rally led by PTI Sindh president DrArifAlvi will reach Nawabshah from Sanghar on April 4. These rallies are part of the welcome preparations for the visit of Chairman Imran Khan to Sindh on April 5-6. PTI’s ‘Tabdeeli Express’ is also a part of these rallies which is giving membership of PTI to the people.

When the PTI rally reached Insaf House Hyderabad it was given a warm welcome.

Holding a press conference on the occasion, HaleemAdil Sheikh said soon a ‘corruption mitaoo, khushalilaoo’ campaign would be held in Sindh soon under which they would hold rallies in each town and village and make people aware about their due rights.

He said we will not form alliance with any other party as our alliance is with the masses, and the masses are the biggest party of this country. He said if the masses want to see a bright future for their children they would have to support the PTI.

He said we want transparent elections on time under the supervision of judiciary. He said in Pakistan there in no place for any sort of martial law. He said on April 29, the PTI would hold a historic rally at the Minar-e-Pakistan, Lahore, in which people from whole country would participate.

HaleemAdil said that soon Nawaz Sharif would be ousted from the politics. He said corruption is the most serious issue of Pakistan. A few families had occupied the country and Imran Khan’s struggle ended this occupation. He alleged that the PPP has already forgotten the mission of Bhutto and Benazir and adopted the mission of Zardari.

He said the winds of change have already been blowing in Sindh and people would witness this change in the coming elections. He said in past the PPP used to win from Punjab and now it is zero in Punjab and there is no vote bank of this party. He said the PTI is the most popular political party and Imran Khan most popular political leader of Pakistan.