LHC acquits Farooqabad death row convict

LAHORE:

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday acquitted a man who had been sentenced to death for killing a citizen over a minor dispute.

The court upheld the convict's appeal against the conviction.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Farooq Haider and Justice Ali Zia Bajwa announced the verdict on the appeal filed by the convict, Altaf.

The bench observed that the prosecution had failed to satisfactorily explain the delay in lodging the First Information Report (FIR). It noted that the incident had beenreported two hours after it had occurred.

It observed that although the prosecution had claimed the injured person had been taken to a hospital on a motorcycle after being shot, neither the motorbike nor the clothes of the individuals who had transported the victim had been presented as evidence.

Additionally, the post-mortem examination had been conducted nine hours after the incident, raising doubts about the prosecution's version.

In view of these shortcomings, the bench allowed the appeal and acquitted the convict.