16 February 2004	Monday	24 Zilhaj 1424

PESHAWAR, Feb 15: A full bench of the Federal Shariat Court will take up for hearing on Feb 18 the criminal appeal of a juvenile offender who is on death row for the last five years.

The appellant, Tahir Khan, has been in death cell at Haripur central prison, waiting for the outcome of his appeal since his conviction by a trial court on May 4, 1999.

He was convicted along with a co-accused. The two were sentenced to death in a murder case. At present, his appeal is pending before the Shariat court. His appeal remained pending before the Peshawar High Court till Feb 2002 when it was taken up for hearing by a division bench and was transferred to the Shariat court.

The high court had observed that as the two convicts were charged under the Offence Against Property (Enforcement of Hudood) Ordinance, 1979, therefore their appeal could only be heard by the Shariat court.

Family members of the appellant claimed that he was only 16 at the time of occurrence. However, neither his counsel agitated the issue of his age nor the trial court recorded it during the trial.

As the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance 2000 was not in the field at that time, the issue of age was not touched by the trial court or the defence counsel. Under the ordinance, death penalty could not be slapped on a juvenile offender.

Due to non-recording of his age the appellant could not be extended the benefit of a presidential notification through which on Dec 13, 2001, death penalties of all juvenile offenders were commuted to life terms.

Family members of the appellant claimed that he is the only living son of a poor widow. After the death of her son and conviction of the second, the woman started losing her memory.