Islamabad:
The Supreme Court postponed on hearing Zahir Jaffer’s call against his death sentence in the murder case of Noor Mukadam until May 19 at the request of Jaffer’s lawyer.
A regular bench of three SC members led by judge Hashim Kakar and including the judges Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Ali Baqar Najafi took the high -level murder case on Tuesday that shocked the nation in June 2021.
Defense lawyer Salman Safdar and the lawyer Shah Khawar were present during the procedure. SAFDAR has requested more time to submit other documents, arguing that these documents could considerably affect the outcome of the case.
He argued that Jaffer suffers from a mental illness, a defense which, according to him, had been neglected by the trial and the high lessons.
“No medical advice has ever been formed to assess the accused’s mental health,” Safdar told the bench, adding that previous judgments of the Supreme Court had also been ignored.
Judge Kakar questioned the justification of an adjournment, noting that the two legal teams were present. “In our court, a case is only delayed if the judge or a lawyer dies,” he said, criticizing the frequency of avoidable delays.
Judge Najafi asked if the question of mental illness had been raised during previous procedures. When Safdar confirmed that it had not been considered sufficient consideration, judge Kakar observed that the point could still be argued without requiring new request.
Prosecutor Shah Khawar opposed the adjournment, but judge Najafi advised him to respond only after the defense officially submitted his request. The court ordered the two parties to return entirely prepared for the next hearing scheduled for May 19.
Noor Mukadam, 27, was found murdered, his head detached from his body at Jaffer’s residence in the high-end sector of Islamabad F-7/4 on July 20, 2021. A first information report (FIR) was later recorded the same day against Zahir Jaffer, who was arrested on the murder site.
In February 2022, a district judge and sessions condemned Jaffer for the murder of Mukadam, sentenced him to death with 25 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of 200,000 rupees.
The High Court of Islamabad (IHC), on March 14, 2023, confirmed Jaffer’s death sentence and also converted his 25 -year sentence to prison into another death penalty in a rape case.
