The Supreme Court of Pakisrtan postponed the hearing on the appeal of Zahir Jaffer against his death sentence in the case of murder of Noor Mukadam until May 19, after the mutual agreement of both parties.
The appeal was heard on Tuesday by a bank of three members headed by Judge Hashim Kakar and including Judges Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Ali Baqar Najafi.
Defense lawyer Salman Safdar and the prosecution lawyer Shah Khawar were present during the procedures.
Safdar requested additional time to present more documents, arguing that the result of the case could significantly affect.
He argued that Jaffer suffers from mental illnesses, a defense that, according to the one he said, had been overlooked both by the trial and by the higher courts.
“Any medical board has never been constituted to evaluate the mental health of the accused,” Safdar told The Bench, adding that the previous trials of the Supreme Court on the matter had also been ignored.
Judge Kakar questioned the justification for a postponement, noting that both legal teams attended. “In our court, one case is only delayed if the judge or lawyer die,” he said, criticizing the frequency of avoidable delays.
Judge Najafi asked if the issue of mental illness had been raised during the previous procedures. When Safdar confirmed that it had not been considered adequate, Judge Kakar observed that the point could still be argued without requiring a new application.
Prosecutor Shah Khawar opposed the postponement, but Judge Najafi advised him to respond only after the defense formally submitted his request.
The court ordered both parties to return completely prepared for the next hearing scheduled for May 19.
Noor, 27, was found murdered with his head separated from his body in the Jaffar residence in the exclusive sector F-7/4 of Islamabad on July 20, 2021. A first information report (FIR) was recorded later on the same day against Zahir Jaffer, who was arrested at the site of the murder.
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In February 2022, a district judge and sessions condemned Jaffer for killing Mukadam, convicing him to death along with 25 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of RS200,000.
The personnel of their home, Iftikhar and Jameel, coacusado in the case, were sentenced to 10 years in prison, while all the other suspects, including Jaffer’s parents and therapyWorks employees, were acquitted.
According to the list of causes available on the website of the Pakistan Supreme Court, “the hearing on the appeal against Jaffer’s death sentence will take place on May 13”.
Judge Hashim Kakar will lead a bank of three members, which includes the justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Judge Ali Baqar Najafi, who will listen to the case.
