PESHAWAR: A local court has convicted a woman, along with another person, for killing her husband and sentenced them to death along with payment of compensation of Rs1 million each to legal heirs of the deceased.

An additional sessions judge, Imtiaz Ali, ruled after completion of trial the court reached to the irresistible conclusion that accused Tahir Khan had committed the intentional murder of the deceased, Waqar Ali, and in the absence of any mitigating circumstances. He was sentenced to death.

Similarly, the court also ruled that it reached the conclusion that the accused, Ms Nayab, abetted Tahir Khan in the intentional murder of her husband and hence, found her guilty of intentional murder.

The deceased, Waqar Ali, an employee of Civil Secretariat Peshawar, was killed by unidentified persons near Hassan Garhi area in the limits of Faqirabad police station on May 23, 2023.

Her accomplice also gets the same sentence along with fine

The complainant in case was father of the deceased, Naimat Ali, who had initially not charged anyone for the commission of the offence. Subsequently, he charged his daughter-in-law Ms Nayab and Tahir Khan for the offence, claiming that they had illicit relations due to which they planned to kill the deceased.

The deputy prosecutor, Mohammad Usman, and the assistant prosecutor, Komal Jan, appeared for the state and argued that there was incontrovertible evidence against the two accused facing trial, which clearly proved their involvement in the commission of the offence.

They contended that the accused had also confessed their guilt. They added that on the pinpointing of accused Tahir the pistol and motorcycle used in the offence were also recovered.

The lawyers appearing for the defence contended that their clients were falsely implicated in the instant case. They said that it was an unseen occurrence and the accused were nominated after almost a month.

They argued that the accused were also kept in illegal detention for many days and were coerced for confession.

During course of trial, the prosecution had also abandoned complainant Naimat Ali as witness by declaring him hostile as certain of his assertions were in favour of the defence.

During cross examination, he had stated that he nominated the accused facing trial on the direction of police. He had claimed that in his presence, police were pressurising the accused for recording their confessional statement before court.

He also claimed that Ms Nayab was having two minor sons and it was in his knowledge that on the day of production of accused before the court, they were kept in police station.

Published in Dawn, March 5th, 2026