KARACHI:The Sindh High Court on Tuesday upheld the death sentence handed down by a trial court to a man on charges of killing four members of a family.

A sessions/model court had sentenced Iftikhar Ahmed alias Badshah, to death in May 2019 for killing Khalid Haroon, his wife, son and young daughter after raping the young girl at their house in Clifton in September 2010.

The convict challenged the trial court order before the SHC and after hearing both sides and examining the record and proceedings of the case, the appellate bench headed by Justice K. K. Agha dismissed the appeal.

The bench observed that the case was based on circumstantial evidence and prosecution proved its case beyond a reasonable shadow of a doubt as the evidence starting from last seen witnesses, recovery of stolen articles from the home and the van of appellant and matching of DNA test about the rape of the deceased girl provided a believable corroborated and unbroken chain of events.

The motive for the murder was either the parents had refused to allow appellant to marry their daughter or after raping the girl appellant got rid of all eyewitnesses, it added.

The prosecution said that the appellant was treated like an “adopted son” by the slain couple and he was mostly residing with them at their flat.

It further stated that the convict during questioning had disclosed that he wanted to marry Haroon’s daughter, but the family refused and he had raped the girl and then killed her along with her parents and brother while they were asleep.

Notices issued

Another division bench issued notices to secretaries of social welfare, human development and religious affairs departments as well as director of Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal regarding an issue of financial assistance to the families of missing persons.

The bench headed by Justice Salahuddin Panhwar also directed the federal and provincial law officers to ensure their presence on Oct 7 to assist the court on the subject matter.

When the bench took up a petition for hearing seeking whereabouts of a man who had gone missing over four years ago, it noted that despite directives issued on the last hearing, none of the officials appeared on behalf of Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal and zakat council while a representative of the chief secretary was in attendance. He informed the court that the advocate general of Sindh would appear and assist the court.

A deputy attorney general and an assistant advocate general were also present and the bench directed them to be in attendance on the next hearing and asked the investigating officer of the case to turn up.

It also asked its office to communicate its order not only through the law officers, but also through other modes to the departments concerned in order to ensure their attendance at the next hearing.

On the last hearing, the bench had asked the federal and provincial law officers that what could be the liability of state towards dependents of missing persons when it failed in implementing the constitutional guarantee to its citizens particularly in the cases where family heads were missing and their families were suffering due to financial crises in maintaining minimum standard of living.

It had further asked them to also examine as to whether financial assistance could be made to such families through zakat or social welfare department and Bait-ul-Mal after a petitioner informed the bench that her husband had been missing for last over four years and she could not manage the education and welfare of her six children without any monetary support.

Published in Dawn, October 6th, 2021