Pakistan’s top court stays release of Daniel Pearl murder accused

Islamabad, September 28

Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Monday barred the Sindh authorities from releasing British-born al-Qaeda chief Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh and his three aides — the primary accused within the abduction and homicide of US journalist Daniel Pearl in 2002.

In April, a two-judge Sindh High Court Bench commuted the loss of life sentence of 46-year-old Sheikh, who was convicted within the abduction and homicide of Pearl in 2002, to seven years. The court docket additionally acquitted his three aides who had been serving life phrases within the case – nearly twenty years after they had been discovered responsible and jailed.

Two days after the Sindh High Court overturned Sheikh’s conviction, the Sindh authorities invoked the Maintenance of Public Order to maintain the 4 convicts in jail. Their detention interval is ready to run out on September 30.

The Sindh authorities filed an enchantment within the Supreme Court in opposition to the excessive court docket verdict. Pearl’s mother and father additionally filed an enchantment to the Supreme Court in opposition to the judgment of the excessive court docket to launch the accused.

A 3-member Bench of the apex court docket headed by Justice Mushir Alam whereas granting Sindh authorities and Pearl’s mother and father’ petitions depart to enchantment in opposition to the excessive court docket judgment issued notices to all of the respondents in acquittal pleas.

Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, was kidnapped and beheaded whereas he was in Pakistan investigating a narrative in 2002 on the alleged hyperlinks between the nation’s highly effective spy company ISI and al-Qaeda.

The Sindh authorities lawyer, Farooq Naek, in his argument insisted that Sheikh was recognized by a taxi driver. He mentioned 23 different witnesses additionally appeared within the trial court docket to show prices in opposition to the prime accused and others.

He mentioned the crime of kidnapping was confirmed and endorsed by the Sindh High Court, which quashed the fees of ransom and homicide. He argued that the excessive court docket ought to have requested for retrial in case of any ambiguity.

“I will request for the Sindh High Court’s decision to be suspended,” Naek mentioned.

After listening to the argument, the apex court docket requested the provincial authorities to maintain the prime accused and his aides in detention.

During the proceedings, the counsel for Pearl’s mother and father, Faisal Siddiqui, argued that Sheikh wrote a letter to the SHC Registrar, however the excessive court docket ignored his confession within the letter, he mentioned.

“All the parties, in this case, have filed an appeal against the decision of the high court,” Siddiqui was quoted as saying by the Express Tribune newspaper.

“We want the trial court’s decision to be reinstated. Evidence suggests the abduction was for ransom. The court’s query regarding the element of conspiracy is correct,” the counsel acknowledged.

Justice Amin recommended placing Sheikh’s identify on the Exit Control List (ECL) in addition to Schedule-B, that might bind him to look earlier than the court docket.

The court docket adjourned the listening to for per week.

Unless the apex court docket overturned the excessive court docket judgment, Sheikh would stroll free as he already served 18 years behind the bars which is greater than life time imprisonment in Pakistan which runs for 14 years. PTI