SC upholds Zahir Jaffer's death sentence

Says recovery of Noor's body from convict's home was enough evidence

ISLAMABAD:

The apex court has upheld the death sentence of Zahir Jaffer, who killed and beheaded his girlfriend Noor Mukadam in July 2021 in his residence at one of Islamabad's upscale neighborhoods.

A three-member regular bench of the Supreme Court led by Justice Muhammad Hasham Kakar and consisting of Justice Ali Baqar Najafi and Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim issued a short order after conclusion of arguments on an appeal filed by Jaffer against an order of Islamabad High Court (IHC).

In February 2022, a district and sessions judge convicted Jaffer of murdering Mukadam, sentencing him to death along with 25 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs200,000.

The trial court also sentenced Jaffer's watchman and gardener, Muhammad Iftikhar and Muhammad Jameel, to 10 years in prison but acquitted all other suspects, including Jaffer's parents.

The IHC on March 14, 2023 upheld the death sentence of Jaffer and also converted his 25-year jail term into another death penalty in a rape case.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the death sentence of Zahir Jaffer for the charge of murder but commuted his death sentence for the charge of rape to life imprisonment. The court acquitted Jaffer of the kidnapping charge and ordered the release of his watchman and gardener.

The court added that the detailed reasoning of the verdict will be issued later. Earlier, Jaffer's counsel Salman Safdar resumed his arguments contending that the entire prosecution case relies on CCTV footage recorded in the Digital Video Recorder (DVR) at Jaffer's residence.

He maintained that the evidence against a suspect must be beyond reasonable doubt and the footage submitted in court cannot go beyond what has been presented. Safdar further stated that the prosecution attempted to play the footage in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) but it failed in doing so.

Justice Hashim Kakar remarked that the CCTV footage being contested had already been accepted by the defense. He said the Punjab Forensic Science Agency also confirmed that the CCTV footage was neither tampered with nor manipulated.

After Safdar's argument's, the defense counsel for the co-accused — a security guard and a gardener — began presenting arguments, stating that both were sentenced to ten years. The lawyer argued that the allegation against the co-accused was that they prevented the victim from leaving.

Justice Ali Baqar Najafi noted that had the accused not restrained the victim, the outcome might have been different. The defense counsel claimed that aside from being present in the house, the guard and gardener committed no other crime.

Justice Kakar observed that many facts in the case were undisputed and did not require further argument.

He noted that it was an accepted fact that the convict and the victim were living together. He said such relationships are common in the west, not here. "Such living arrangements between a man and a woman are a misfortune in our society and go against both religion and morality," he said.

He noted that even without the CCTV footage, the fact that Noor's body was found in the convict's home was enough evidence.

Justice Najafi remarked that if awareness is to be raised, then youth should be informed of the dangers and consequences of live-in relationships.

Justice Kakar added that the youth should also be warned about the harms of drug use.

Noor Mukadam, 27, was found murdered with her head detached from her body at Jaffer's residence in Islamabad's Sector F-7/4 on July 20, 2021. A first information report (FIR) was registered later the same day against Zahir Jaffer, who was arrested at the site of the murder.