Wife, sister make last-ditch attempt to delay hanging
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KARACHI: With tears streaming down their faces and choked voices, the wife and the sister of Saulat Mirza appealed to the president, prime minister of Pakistan and the chief of army staff on Friday to have mercy on the death row prisoner and give him more time so that they can seek forgiveness for him from the victims’ families.
The fresh appeal to the authorities came after their petition for the deferment of his hanging was rejected by the Sindh High Court. “Our petition was rejected this morning,” said Nikhat, the wife of the convict, at a hurriedly called press conference at the Karachi Press Club. She was accompanied by his sister, Sumaira Wajahat.
Also read: SHC rejects petition seeking deferment of Saulat Mirza’s execution
Saulat Mirza, who was sentenced to death in 1999 for killing KESC managing director Shahid Hamid, his driver Ashraf Brohi, and guard Khan Akbar in 1997 has been in jail since 1998. He was shifted from Karachi to Machh jail this year and black warrant for his hanging were issued twice followed by deferments, as he offered to spill the beans about issues threatening national security while levelling serious allegations against the Muttahida Qaumi Movement.
The latest black warrant fixed May 12 for his hanging. While Nikhat and Sumaira filed a petition with the Sindh High Court requesting deferment of his execution and re-opening of the Shahid Hamid murder case, the petition was rejected.
Nikhat said: “Now I appeal to the president of Pakistan, the prime minister of Pakistan and Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif for mercy. After the rejection [of the petition], I wrote and couriered letters to all the three gentlemen. I hope they will reply. I pray they will.
“Saulat has been behind bars for 17 years. He is going nowhere. I have sought three to four months more so that I can locate the families of the ones who lost their lives due to my husband’s actions. I will fall at their feet and beg their forgiveness. Please let me look into this possibility, too. Please let me knock on this door, too,” she cried.
“I have been running to human rights organisations and NGOs. I want to meet Asma Jahangir as well. Saulat is terribly sorry for what he did. There is always room for forgiveness. Please have a heart,” the wife pleaded.
Published in Dawn, May 9th, 2015
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Comments (55) Closed
May 09, 2015 07:02am
I feel sorry for her but one should think twice for his loved ones before commiting crimes. Also why she did not try to find the victims, families in last many years ?
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May 09, 2015 07:10am
I am extremely sorry for her plight, poor lady is between the rock and the hard place. What her husband did was to put her in this misery and trepidation. It was not Shahid Hamid and the other two victim's fault that Saulat Mirza is in this state of affair. He volunteered himself for this murder, did the recon of the victim, acquire the weapons, drove the vehicle to the attack site, attacked the victims to kill them and finally ran away from the attacked site, all voluntary and with an intention to kill a person who did not harm Saulat Mirza or anyone else for that matter. He was an adult at the time of attack and was able to think, initiate, plan, execute and control of himself for being in this situation. Why this lady do not understand that there were also some rights of the victims too, he did a capital crime, he got to accept the punishment. Sorry to the lady again.
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May 09, 2015 07:13am
17 years ! And you guys did not locate or ask for forgiveness from the victims family ?
He -- not only killed 3 people / he ruined 4 families. -- 3 the victims + 1 his own family.
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May 09, 2015 07:20am
Let the justice do it work. What is this drama?
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May 09, 2015 07:25am
You knew what your husband was yet you let him continue.
He deserves what is coming to him... those who ordered him will see a similar fate iA
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May 09, 2015 07:33am
She is a total drama queen. Her husband told her who he was before marriage--yet she married him.
In the U S she would have been charged accessory to murder---an accomplice in all the crimes that he committed.
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May 09, 2015 07:34am
Feel sad for the women.
If the man would have thought about them before indulging into crimes.
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May 09, 2015 07:34am
Though Saulat's past was very bad and foolish yet he should be given a chance to correct him. We know that to err is human.
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May 09, 2015 07:35am
@Ali Mahad You call it drama ? He may be a criminal but for these women,he is son,husband,brother.
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May 09, 2015 08:00am
Ruthless killing machines deserve no mercy
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May 09, 2015 08:02am
First they were trying to make under the table deal with the agencies and now need more time to seek deal with the victims family. Its too late to fix things . Let him go to where he deserved. Even if he has done these heinous crimes on the instructions of others as he had claimed , he needs to be punished so as to make a lesson for others that be careful and never anyone blindly especially when are asked to commit such terrible crimes. And nobody is above the law. Justice will prevail.
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May 09, 2015 08:04am
Unfortunately her wife is just trapped with such difficult painful life. I wish people think before committing crimes how their families would suffer because of their actions. I really felt sorry for them. The victims and their families deserve respect as well. Those who asked Saulat Mirza for killing should deserve punishment as well. I wonder what Govt did for that. Did they just ignored those links.
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May 09, 2015 08:10am
Let this saga reach to its final conclusion.
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May 09, 2015 08:27am
@Ostrich They had a responsibility to keep the 'husband', the 'brother' under legalities. If they can't persuade by all mean, simply abandon him or they will be considered accomplice. Being any relationship to anyone doesn't mean that he should be spared in capital punishments.
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May 09, 2015 08:31am
@Mansoor . Wake up ..why not give last chance to other 900 prisoners too...they did a crime let them suffer . No mercy
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May 09, 2015 08:41am
The real culprits are really strong therefore instruments like Saulat have to pay price. This is the dilemma in Pakistan and for this very reason heinous crimes like target killing continue.
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May 09, 2015 08:41am
He made people leave this earth before their time, so why he should have mercy? What about victims right? A true Muslim should never side with the aggressor.
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May 09, 2015 09:03am
Saheed Shahid Hamid and his family must get justice now. The murderer does not deserve mercy on any pretext. Justice delayed is justice denied.
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May 09, 2015 09:04am
Most civilized countries have banned the death penalty for some good reasons. I believe incase of terrorism death penalty is only way. However, in cases like this- life imprisonment without any chance of parole shoud suffice. Hanging Sault Mirza will not bring back the victims. Let him suffer in prison and reflect on what he did to the victims' families and his own loved ones. The bigger question is whether the Pakistani Government will try the real culprits behind Sault Mirza and bring them to pay for their share of sins....
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May 09, 2015 09:16am
@Vic dude , calm down. Have some empathy.... She is a young woman in a society that offers little to no options to a widow or a (female) divorcee. No drama here. She is exercising her right to save her husband through the options offered by the law. Just like in US when you could appeal to the get a death sentence conviction overturned to life imprisonment. You can't call her an accomplice just because she is appealing her husbands case......
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May 09, 2015 09:25am
I like dawn news because it more information & increase our knowledge so please continuoue it
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May 09, 2015 09:32am
Maybe they should cry for the victims family. Why delay the verdict. Let justice be served.
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May 09, 2015 09:38am
Death sentence is cruel and inhuman and, in Pakistan, mostly unjust. There should be only full life sentences for murderers.
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May 09, 2015 09:46am
Put your self in her shoes please forgive him i truly believe he is changed i might be wrong even then he is not going any where he might help in near future.what would i say if my father was killed bu him the answer to that is i dont know but i might go to him ask him what dis he got out of jilling someone
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May 09, 2015 09:46am
@Mansoor and let go the victims death and their families 'suffering go in vain ? May God protect your family ,may none of us ever have to go through what these four families are being through all these years
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May 09, 2015 10:08am
Victim's family should get justice ... its been already delayed. as long as saulat's wife and sister 's tears are concerned, if we go for that , no killer would get punished ever.
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May 09, 2015 10:16am
I am lost. I really need to recall if he killed only these kesc md guards driver or more. I saw the youtube video and trying to recall.
But I do feel sorry for the family and also for saulat mirza who is the aged one.
But I also want to know when he was killing people what his family was doing that time. They were aware or not....
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May 09, 2015 10:21am
@Israr what about those who lost their lives due to such criminals. thier lives are equally important. these psyco killers must know that they cannot kill people and maximum will get life in prision. life in prison is such a pain for families who lost their lives and know that their loved ones killers are alive in jails. only those can feel who has lost their loved one. so think before you comment.
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May 09, 2015 10:35am
no sorry for killers!!! except he pay and all families agree for blood money
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May 09, 2015 10:39am
From Islamic point of view, forgiveness if possible by the relatives is the first priority, then blood money and finally life for life if the families of the deceased reject willingly the first two options.
The punishment in Islam is not about taking life but preserving and even in this case they should be provided all possible chances to exploit avaliable options.
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May 09, 2015 10:40am
@Ostrich...those who killed by Mirza, were also someone's son, husband & brother...!!
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May 09, 2015 10:46am
death penality is given to discourage the people to killing the inocents. If we start to forgive these brutals by any means,
there will be more murder rate..
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May 09, 2015 10:47am
I've read all the comments, but what i have found is no one is serious here..
In my opinion punish "them" who ordered him but not him,However he already received his punishment from last 17 years till now..
He lost his dignity,family,acquaintances and everything..
Justice should be served but what about the other So called pakistanis & some politicians who's been convicted in such heinous crime! still they're outside and enjoying their life with their family.. Its a big,huge,massive crime what he did..
But at least think about the other families too how they're suffering..
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May 09, 2015 10:56am
If Saulat Mirza's allegations may be true then it should serve as eye opening for others. Sometimes with a moment of wrong decision though initially taken in good faith, one has to pass entire life with dead conscience for the fear of own life as well as of the lved ones. Now after having confessed of commiting the murder he deserves the punishment as awarded by the Court.
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May 09, 2015 11:00am
If Pakistani Govt is smart, they need to use Saulat Mirza to prosecute all those who were behind Saulat Mirza. They were the actual culprits.
Keep him alive as witness until prosecute mastermind behind all killing.
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May 09, 2015 11:02am
Too much media hype in this case.
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May 09, 2015 11:22am
The lady has no blame but if she realized all these on time than it will be far better and will give benefits of doubt but now the time passed and she must remember what will be the reaction of the families when they received the coffins of innocent lovers what they did on which point they killed.
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May 09, 2015 11:30am
Sometimes back i had watched a video in which this very woman in a press conference was saying Mirza had not committed this crime at all....he was with her somewhere away from the site of the killing, that her husband was innocent, injustice is being incurred upon him like never before in history of Pakistan.....today I'm reading that she says he's sorry for what he did.....oh my my!!!
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May 09, 2015 11:45am
Until now, majority of comments demand justice for slain Shahid Hamid.
We must keep in mind that main culprits using Saulat Mirza are still free.
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May 09, 2015 12:08pm
Did Saulat think about "forgiving" the men he killed? He is not entitled to forgiveness!!!
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May 09, 2015 01:08pm
Forgive and forget
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May 09, 2015 01:08pm
All noise from the Drama Queen!
It is when the party abandoned him, he came front. He was still an active member of the party while IN the jail! And now all of sudden he has this "moral itch"??!!
As for the wife, she had been refusing that he even committed crime AFTER her he testified! Typical....
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May 09, 2015 01:58pm
@Ostrich and what about the victims..? they had no sisters, wives, kids..etc
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May 09, 2015 02:05pm
@Ostrich Why they remembered now about forgiveness? they were living happily before 16 Dec,2014 because they did never think that ever they would be even hanged.. you dont remember what Mirza's wife sentenced that "Mirza's said that he would never be executed".. no mercy just Justice now should be implemented in the Pakistan so that crime ration can less
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May 09, 2015 02:16pm
Those days she was also influential !!!!
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May 09, 2015 02:45pm
@maverick His wife used to be very influential those old days !!!
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May 09, 2015 03:56pm
Ladies, where have you been for the last 17 years - you should have found the victims families a long time ago. You were all set as you had the assurance that your hubby and little brother was taken care of. Now the new government is taking care of the business, you just woke up? Take a hike....and say goodbye to you hubby and brother - you atleast have a chance to say goodbye, the victims didn't... how sorry. I feel so sorry for the victims and their families. Note, its vistimS not just one victim......
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May 09, 2015 04:09pm
I am against capital punishment - though he has confessed to his crimes and he is very sick by the look, may be life imprisonment . Hanging him will not bring those people.They should punish people behind him.
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May 09, 2015 04:41pm
Sixteen years have passed and these people have not Asked forgiveness for him from the victims’ families.
Has Saulat Mirza ever asked the families for forgiveness?
I hope your heading for this news is correct that this is their LAST attempt.
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May 09, 2015 05:36pm
JUSTICE is above all emotions...
If you start forgiving the criminals then ready to observe a destroyed society...
Nobody will care while committing crime because of such provisions of forgiveness..
If someone sees her with compassion, he is definitely neglecting the affected families. He goona face what he had actually committed but the affected family of martyred would spend rest of the days-n-nights with tears-n-griefs. They have to face such miserable life without committing any sinful act (with convict or any other)..
Why justice is not provided yet to the victim's family??? Answer lies in our heart....
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May 09, 2015 07:03pm
This case needs to be reopened and thorough investigation is required against Mr. Ghauri and another British national.
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May 09, 2015 07:37pm
She must be given the time to exploit last chance Islam also allow this facility
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May 09, 2015 10:41pm
Sorry, but why u did not stop him before, our politics is very dirty whether its MQM or any other party
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May 10, 2015 12:25am
Justice cant be denied and same for everyone killings have to stop now
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May 10, 2015 03:07am
@Zee Yes, I agree. He was unrepentant until the very end when he seen writing on the wall. However, I am disappointed that his information were not properly investigated.
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