Supreme Court of Pakistan
Mujahid alias Mujahidi and Nadeem alias Deemi v. The State; Badar Zaman v. The State and others
Published on this website
Criminal Petitions No. 356-L and 417-L of 2016
Citation: Approved for reporting; reported citation not stated in the supplied judgment
Case summary
The judgment in brief
The Supreme Court acquitted two murder convicts after finding the chance witnesses' presence unexplained, their detailed firing account unnatural, the physical recoveries inconsistent and medical evidence incapable of identifying the assailants.
Question of law
The legal question
Whether the murder convictions could be sustained on the account of chance witnesses whose presence was unsupported, where the firing narrative appeared unnatural, physical recoveries did not fit the alleged indiscriminate firing, recovered weapons were not forensically compared, and medical evidence did not identify the assailants.
Court holding
What the Court decided
The witnesses had no ordinary reason to be at the scene and did not support their Fateha explanation with independent material. Their highly precise allocation of shots and injuries appeared unnatural, the recovered empties were incompatible with the alleged extensive firing, and the recovered weapons were not sent for ballistic comparison. Medical evidence confirmed firearm death but could not identify the shooters or independently prove their roles. The cumulative defects created reasonable doubt.
Result
Outcome and directions
The convicts' petition was converted into an appeal and allowed. The convictions and sentences of Mujahid alias Mujahidi and Nadeem alias Deemi were set aside, and they were acquitted by benefit of doubt with a direction for release unless required in another case. The complainant's petition for enhancement of sentence was dismissed as infructuous.
Practical effect
What the decision means in practice
The convicts' petition was converted into an appeal and allowed. The convictions and sentences of Mujahid alias Mujahidi and Nadeem alias Deemi were set aside, and they were acquitted by benefit of doubt with a direction for release unless required in another case. The complainant's petition for enhancement of sentence was dismissed as infructuous.
This summary states the immediate effect recorded in the decision. The original judgment and the facts of the particular case remain controlling.
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Original judgment and official source
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Precedent record
Authority and later treatment
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- Approved for reporting; reported citation should be checked when assigned
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- Later treatment
- No later judicial treatment has yet been editorially verified for this record
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Independent analysis
Read Shahbaz Shah's legal commentary
The Supreme Court acquitted two murder convicts after finding the chance witnesses' presence unexplained, their detailed firing account unnatural, the physical recoveries inconsistent and medical evidence incapable of identifying the assailants.
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