KARACHI: The Sindh High Court has upheld the life imprisonment handed down to two men, said to be associated with the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-London, by an antiterrorism court on charges of murdering two workers of the Pak Sarzameen Party.

An ATC had sentenced Muhammad Rahim and Muhammad Danish to life in prison in September 2019 for killing Abdul Majeed alias Nadeem Maulana and Rashid Khan in Orangi Town in July 2017.

The convicts, through their counsel, challenged the verdict before the SHC and after hearing both sides and examining the record and proceedings of the case, a division bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha dismissed the appeals and maintained the trial court judgement.

Court observes evidence suggested appellants acted on instructions received from outside Pakistan

“That the evidence shows that this was an orchestrated case of target killing whereby the appellants acted on instructions received from outside Pakistan whilst acting as hired guns in order to murder their political rivals and as such no leniency can be allowed in sentencing if the charges are proved as deterrent sentences are the only way to put an end to such practices which seem similar to the circumstances surrounding the death of former MQM leader Imran Farooq whereby assassins were sent from Pakistan to murder him in London, England,” the verdict said.

The bench observed that the case of prosecution was primarily rested on sole eyewitness, who had rightly identified the appellants. The eyewitness was an independent witness and his evidence was not dented during a lengthy cross-examination, it added.

The court said the judicial confessions of the appellants were also found to be made voluntarily.

It further said that as per the prosecution, it was a case of targeted killing based on the political affiliation of the victims.

According to the prosecution, the two PSP workers were gunned down by armed motorcyclists outside their homes near the Sindh Govt Qatar Hospital in Orangi Town in July 2017.

It said that the directives for the murders were issued by MQM leaders from London through the party’s South African set-up and the hitmen were paid Rs50,000 as reward for doing the job.

It further said both the victims were facing death threats as they left the MQM and joined the PSP.

Published in Dawn, February 13th, 2022