PHC upholds death sentence of six terror convicts

Asks KPEC to merge all references into one against ex-minister

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Tuesday upheld the death sentence of six terrorists who were convicted by the military courts.  

A two-member bench comprising Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth and Justice Syed Afsar Shah dismissed the six appeals filed against the death sentences.The bench upheld the death sentences after hearing the arguments and going through the record of the military courts.

However, the court observed that the relatives of the convicts had visitation rights.The court conducted in-camera proceedings.Additional Attorney General of Pakistan Muhammad Attique Shah appeared on behalf of the federal government and Ministry of Defence and produced record in the court.

The family members of a convict, Fazle Ghaffar, claimed in the appeal that they didn’t know on what charges he was awarded death sentence.The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of the Pakistan Army, on March 15 made public the death sentence of Fazle Ghaffar. “The convict was an active member of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and was involved in assaulting armed forces. A suicide jacket was also recovered from his possession. He was tried on four charges and admitted his offences before the court,” the ISPR statement said.

The relatives of another convict, Mushtaq Ahmad, submitted in the appeal that he was picked up by the security forces on December 20, 2011 and since then he was untraceable.It said the family came to know through the media that Mushtaq Ahmad had been awarded death sentence by a military court.

However, the ISPR stated that, “Mushtaq Ahmad was an active member of the TTP and was involved in attacking the Saidu Sharif Airport, killing employees of the Meteorological Department and destruction of an educational institution, which resulted in death of civilians and injuries to soldiers. He was tried on six charges.”

The parents of the third convict, Taj Gul, hailing from Swat stated in the appeal that the local elders had handed him over to the security forces in 2011.The family of Taj Gul also came to know about his conviction by a military court through the media on March 16.  His father Sultan Zareen claimed in the petition that his son was not involved in terrorism. He said the sentence was unlawful and prayed the court to declare it void.

On the other hand, the ISPR claimed in an earlier statement that Taj Gul was involved in attacks on the law-enforcing agencies that resulted in the death of police constables and Levies personnel. It also claimed that arms and explosives were recovered from his possession. “He confessed to his crimes before the magistrate and was awarded death sentence,” the ISPR stated.

The family members of another convict Ikramullah, son of Habibullah claimed in the appeal that he was innocent and was not given a chance to defend himself.However, the ISPR claimed that Ikramullah was involved in attacking the armed forces and damaging army helicopters. It said he was also found to be carrying explosives.

The ISPR said he was tried on four charges and confessed to his crimes before the court.Ameer Zareen, the father of a convict, Bakht Ameer, had also filed the appeal claiming that his son was innocent and he was not given a chance to defend himself.  

The ISPR claimed that Bakht Ameer was tried on three charges and was involved in attacking the army personnel. It said he confessed to his crimes before the court and was awarded death sentence.

The mother of a convict, Fateh Khan, belonging to Khyber Agency, claimed that her son was picked up by the security forces on November 20, 2014 from Sarband in Peshawar.

She submitted that Fateh Khan had been missing, but she received a notice from the Kohat Prison on March 29 to meet her son as he would be hanged on March 30 after being sentenced to death by military court on terrorism charges.

Meanwhile, the PHC on Tuesday disposed of a writ petition of former provincial minister Ziaullah Afridi with a direction to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ehtesab Commission (KPEC) to first file all the references against the petitioner within a specified time and then merge them into one as per the fresh amendments to the KPEC Act.

A two-member bench comprising Chief Justice Mazhar Alam Miankhel and Justice Daud Khan disposed of the writ petition after hearing arguments from the lawyer and deputy prosecutor general of the KPEC.

However, the high court ordered that proceeding in references against the petitioner would remain suspended until the commission merged all the references into a single one under the fresh amendments to the act.

Member Provincial Assembly Ziaullah Afridi, who was the minister for mines and mineral development when arrested by the commission in July 2015, had filed the writ petition. He had requested the court to declare trial against him in more than one reference at the same time as illegal and against the law.

The petitioner had challenged the preparation of the two subsequent references against him at a time when he is still facing trial in the earlier reference.

Ziaullah Afridi, who was also expelled from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf after he had levelled allegations against Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, was arrested on July 9, 2015.

The KPEC had initially charged him with carrying out illegal postings, transfers and facilitating illegal mining in the province.

Later, he was charged in two other cases. He was accused of facilitating illegal extension in lease of a lessee of the chromite mines in Charsadda and facilitating illegal mining of phosphate in Abbottabad.

Shumail Ahmad Butt, lawyer for the petitioner, said in the initial grounds for arrest given to his client it was mentioned that he had failed to exercise his authority to prevent loss to the exchequer through illegal mining, and the said charge pertained to the entire province. He questioned how the commission later prepared separate cases pertaining to mines in Charsadda and Abbottabad.

The lawyer said the KPEC intended to file more references against his client in the Ehtesab courts. He said when offences of the same kind were mentioned by the commission, then his client had to be tried in a single reference.

The lawyer said under Section 42 of the KPEC Act, 2014, a person accused of more offences than one of the same kind might be charged with and tried at one trial for any number of such offences.

KPEC Deputy Prosecutor General Zahid Aman said the commission had already filed two more references against the petitioner. He submitted that during investigation against the petitioner different cases surfaced against him and thus, the commission are filing separate cases against him.