The Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the death sentence of Zahir Jaffer for the gruesome murder of Noor Mukadam nearly four years ago that had shaken the nation.
After the ruling by the top court, a presidential pardon under Article 45 of the Constitution could possibly provide Zahir pardon, or reprieve, or remit, suspend or commute his sentence.
Noor, aged 27 years, was found murdered at Zahir’s Islamabad residence in July 2021, with the probe revealing she was tortured before being beheaded. Zahir’s death sentence by the trial court had already been upheld by the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
A three-member bench, led by Justice Hashim Kakar and including Justices Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Ali Baqar Najafi, presided today over the third hearing of Zahir’s appeal against his death sentence.
The bench upheld Zahir’s death sentence handed by two courts previously over the murder charges under Section 302(b) (premeditated murder) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).
However, it converted the IHC’s decision of a second death penalty over rape charges into a life sentence . The high court had turned Zahir’s 25 years of rigorous imprisonment under Section 376 of the PPC into a death sentence.
The 10-year jail term for kidnapping in order to murder under Section 364 of the PPC was reduced to one year. The trial court had also imposed a fine of Rs100,000 in February 2022.
The apex court maintained the earlier orders to Zahir to pay Rs0.5 million to Noor’s legal heir.
The appeals of two co-accused — watchman Mohammad Iftikhar and gardener Jan Mohammad — against their 10-year sentences were also taken up by the SC.
The watchman and gardener’s sentences were reduced, with the bench deciding their detention so far was sufficient.
“Therefore, by virtue of that, both will be released,” said Advocate Shah Khawar, the lawyer for Noor’s father, retired diplomat Shaukat Mukadam.
Zahir’s counsel, Barrister Salman Safdar, concluded his arguments today, while Khawar also presented his.
A short order on today’s hearing is yet to be issued. It is expected to detail the court’s decision on an appeal by Shaukat against the acquittal of Zahir’s father, Zakir Jaffer.
During the course of the trial, judges made demeaning comments about Noor for spending time alone with Jaffer, with Justice Kakar on Tuesday adding that it was “against our values”, according to AFP.
Farzana Bari, a women’s rights activist who attended the hearing, said the comments imply “that the man has some legitimate right to detain her, which is a harmful and regressive notion”.
“Such judicial attitudes contribute to a long and exhausting struggle for justice, often leading victims to lose hope and give up along the way,” she told the outlet.
Meanwhile, Shafaq Zaidi, a childhood friend of Noor, told AFP outside the court: “This is a victory for all the women of Pakistan. It shows that our justice system can deliver justice and should give women more confidence in the legal process
“This was our last resort, and it’s hard to put into words what this outcome means to us.”
Human rights defender, Tahira Abdullah, in a statement, said: “It is a milestone achievement in Pakistani women’s ongoing struggle for justice — and also against entrenched patriarchy, sexism and misogyny, openly expressed in court by the defence legal team today as well.”
During the previous hearing, the accused’s lawyer contended that no medical board was formed to assess his client’s mental state. Justice Kakar had observed, “A daughter was mercilessly murdered.”
In October last year, Noor’s father had urged the SC to take up the murder case pending for more than one and a half years in the top court.
