KARACHI, Jan 31: The additional district and sessions judge, East, Jawed Qaiser, sentenced on Tuesday a man to serve life imprisonment for killing his brother-in-law.
The judge also imposed a fine of Rs100,000 on Zeeshan Khan, who had fatally wounded Sajjad Ahmed, husband of his elder sister, on Oct 4, 2000, at the victim’s house in Korangi Industrial Area.
The accused fled the scene after the incident and was arrested after a couple of days by the police who also seized the pistol he had used in the offence.
The police registered the case against Zeeshan on Oct 6, 2000, on the complaint of his injured brother-in-law who died at the Jinnah Post-graduate Medical Centre on Oct 13, 2000.
The prosecution, represented by deputy district attorney Syed Muneer Burni, examined in all seven prosecution witnesses.
Dying declaration of the victim, made before the investigation officer, and the seizure of pistol from the accused at the time of his arrest were two main pieces of evidence which brought about the conviction.
According to Sajjad’s dying declaration, his mother-in-law and his brother-in-law Zeeshan came to his house on Oct 4, 2000. His mother-in-law took his wife, Samina, out with her, while Zeeshan remained in his house. Zeeshan asked him why he had beat up his sister. As Sajjad told him that it was his personal matter, Zeeshan took out pistol, fired upon him and fled the scene.
During the course of trial, the prosecution also produced victim’s wife as prosecution witness. However, the woman was declared a hostile witness on the request of the prosecution as she attempted to save his accused brother.
The judge also ordered that the convict would have to undergo an additional one-year term in case he defaulted on the payment of fine.
Later, the deputy district attorney told newsmen that the accused was not entitled to any leniency as the prosecution had proved its case beyond any shadow of doubt. “The prosecution reserves the right of moving an appeal to the Sindh High Court for seeking death penalty for the accused”, he added.
PRISONERS’ VAN CASE: Judge Haq Nawaz Baloch of the ATC-5 put off the hearing of the prisoners’ van firing case against five workers of the banned Lashkar-i-Jhangvi after recording the statement of a prosecution witnesses.
The judge fixed Saturday for the next hearing after the deposition of Sub-inspector Ameer Kalam, who were also cross-examined by defence counsel Amir Mansoob Qureshi, M. A. Warsi and Ashraf Mughul.
Five LJ activists have been charged with killing a constable and an undertrial prisoner during an attack on a prisoners’ van.
