[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text dp_text_size=”size-4″]ISLAMABAD: Zahir Jaffer has filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against his death sentence, claiming that the trial and high courts failed to identify fundamental flaws in the First Information Report (FIR) and that their verdicts were based on “erroneous evidence appreciation.”
Noor Mukadam was found brutally murdered in Islamabad’s upscale F-7/4 sector on 20 July 2021. Jaffer was arrested as the primary suspect in the case after her body was discovered.
On February 24, 2022, a trial court in Islamabad sentenced Jaffer to death for the murder of Noor Mukadam. The court also found Jaffer guilty of rape and sentenced him to 25 years in prison and a Rs200,000 fine.
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On March 14, an Islamabad High Court (IHC) division bench upheld Jaffar’s death sentence while also converting his life imprisonment to death.
The convict has now filed an appeal against the IHC order through Salman Safdar, claiming that the petitioner and his family are unhappy with the media trial and the constant pressure “that was visibly present during the investigation stage” and then continued during Jaffer’s trial.
“Innocent people, including elderly parents, were charged with malafide intent on the most flimsy of charges.” The appellant’s trial was conducted in clear violation of Article 10 A of the Constitution, which guarantees a fair trial, as a result of the social media hype.
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“The petitioner is in particular aggrieved with the erroneous conviction and excessively harsh punishment. The trial court had acquitted (08) disbelieving the prosecution’s evidence.
“Quite surprisingly the Honourable IHC completely disregarded authoritative judgments that were consulted and relied upon at the time of dealing with quantum of sentence. Quite seemingly, the appellant’s case, during trial and appellate stage has been dealt with “differently” than an ordinary case.
“The prosecution miserably failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt against the appellant.
“On the basis of assumptions and presumptions which is no replacement for solid, concrete and admissible evidence under the Qanoon-e Shahadat Ordinance 1984 the petitioner has been convicted and sentenced to death due to excessive influence and pressure from the media and NGOs”
According to the petition, there is no denying that the law governing mental illness in Pakistan has not been comprehensively and exhaustively developed in comparison to other countries.
“In the landmark and authoritative judgement reported as PLD 2021 SC 488, the larger bench of the Honourable Supreme Court comprising five worthy judges provided extensive guidelines for dealing with and determining the issue of mental illness.”
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According to the petition, despite clarification through this elaborate judgement, as well as the presence of strong and overwhelming indicators and evidence that Zahir Jaffer had mental and psychological issues that could fall under recognised mental ailments, no proper investigation was conducted, ruling out the petitioner’s’mental fitness’ to stand criminal trial.
“There is enough evidence to suggest a miscarriage of justice and that the trial was conducted in violation of Article 10-A of the Constitution.”
According to the petition, his family was aware of his aggressive outbursts and use of psychoactive substances for many years prior to the incident. Personality assessment, psychotherapy, and drug detoxification have all been shown to be effective treatments.
“Petitioner was regularly attending therapy sessions, and according to the prosecution’s case, Therapy Works Islamabad was initially brought for intervention at the petitioner’s residence.”
“As a result, Therapy Works Islamabad was also charged in the same transaction.” It is imperative to note that Therapy Works is a rehabilitation centre for curing people with mental illnesses and drug addictions.
“Strong evidence in the trial surfaced that much prior to the arrival of the police on the day of the occurrence, Therapy Works attempted to intervene, control, and treat the petitioner.”
It stated that the trial court proceeded with the recording of evidence in the absence of the petitioner due to the disturbance caused by the appellant’s psychological disorder.
“There is also evidence confirming that he was admitted to a jail hospital due to repeated psychotic episodes, where the medical officer recommended Tablet Pramcit 20 mg, Tablet Ozip 5mg, and Syrup Lylac to pacify his condition.”
“It appears that the petitioner’s case has clearly been prejudiced for these reasons, as the petitioner was unable to effectively defend himself or participate in the criminal investigation.”
The petition claimed that the IHC and the session court could not identify the fundamental flaws that existed in the FIR.
“The FIR omits crucial information such as the exact time of calls; more crucially the identities of the various friends in whose company the deceased remained immediately prior to the reported crime,” it added.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
