Pakistan

Sialkot lynching case: Convicts file appeal in Lahore High Court

Say the court gave out the verdict ‘under pressure’.

Agencies September 25, 2011

LAHORE:

Several people convicted in the Sialkot lynching case appealed against their sentences in the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Saturday.

Those who filed an appeal include Jameel, Qaiser, Hassan Raza, Muhammad Akram, Rashid Nadeem, former District Police Officer (DPO) Sialkot Waqar Chohan and former Station House Officer (SHO) Waris Ali. On September 20, the Gujranwala Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) issued death sentences to seven of the accused, life imprisonment to six and three-year terms in prison to all of the police officials involved.

All the convicts have challenged their sentences. They said their culpability was not substantiated with evidence and that the court gave out the verdict ‘under pressure’ by the media and the public.

The main accused, Chohan, filed an appeal in the LHC through his counsel Faisal Shahzad Gondal, submitting that he was ‘innocent and wrongly convicted’ in the case.

On August 15, 2010, hundreds of people gathered in broad daylight in Buttran Wali, Sialkot, as victims Mughees and Muneeb were lynched, in full view of police officers who made no attempts to stop the killings. The bodies of the two brothers were dragged through the streets by the mob, who labelled them as robbers.

Meanwhile, the victims’ father moved the court against the acquittal of five of the accused people.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 25^th, 2011.

COMMENTS (3)

shayan | 13 years ago | Reply

it was a brutal murder i will never forget till i die,being a mother i was deeply hurt.there were many who were kicking,throwing stones, hitting with sticks and abusing these innocent brothers may Allah punish all of them ameen.

shayan | 13 years ago | Reply pls i request the way those culprits were dragging the dead bodies is highly inhuman,the six culprits should be sentenced to death also.Dpo has proved himself not capable at all he should begiven life imprisonment.Infact these culprits shouldnt have given a chance to appeal,remember that if severe punishment is not given to these culprits then such cases will appear more and more.Nearly half of the Pakistan is crying for justice.May Allah help the family of the deceased brothers who were later on proved innocent.