JUI leader among three given life term

Farrukh Khokhar, two others sentenced for 2002 murder of PTI activist Majid Satti

PUNJAB:

An Additional District and Sessions Court on Tuesday sentenced three men, including senior Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) leader Farrukh Imtiaz Khokhar, to life imprisonment in the high-profile murder case of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) activist Majid Satti, after finding them guilty of the offence.

Additional District and Sessions Judge Afshan Ejaz Soofi delivered the verdict in the case registered at Sadiqabad Police Station, also imposing a fine of Rs1 million each on the three convicts. The court directed that the compensation be paid to the victim's family.

According to the prosecution, the dispute arose after the deceased allegedly resisted an attempt to forcibly occupy a property. During the altercation, the accused opened fire, killing Majid Satti before fleeing the scene.

Immediately after the verdict was announced, police took Khokhar, Ameer Hamza, son of Azam Khan, and Haider Nawaz into custody in the courtroom, handcuffed them and transferred them to Adiala Jail to serve their sentences.

The prosecution told the court that the case had been registered at Sadiqabad PS on August 23, 2022 under charges including murder, attempted murder and criminal conspiracy. The accused were alleged to have conspired to kill Satti by opening indiscriminate fire in the Sixth Road area before fleeing the scene.

The prosecution further stated that the three accused were arrested following public protests and demonstrations demanding their arrest.

The case was prosecuted by District Public Prosecutor Mian Imran Raheem, assisted by prosecutors Tariq Shehzad Gondal and Mureed Raza, who presented eyewitness testimony, forensic evidence, the post-mortem report and other documentary evidence before the court.

They argued that the murder had been committed without lawful justification and in a brutal manner, adding that the murder weapon had also been recovered, and urged the court to award exemplary punishment.

After examining the evidence, the court held that the prosecution had proved the charges beyond reasonable doubt and observed that the three convicts did not deserve any leniency in view of the nature of the offence.

Following the conviction, all three were committed to Adiala Jail to serve their life sentences.

Farrukh Imtiaz Khokhar is the son of the late Imtiaz Ahmed, alias Taji Khokhar, a prominent Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader who was regarded as a close associate of President Asif Ali Zardari. President Zardari had also gifted a gold pistol to both the father and son.

Farrukh Khokhar resigned from the PPP last year and joined JUI-F, with the party chief, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, attending and addressing a gathering at his political office to welcome him into the party.

Heavy security arrangements were in place at the Judicial Complex during the announcement of the verdict, with a large police contingent deployed as hundreds of supporters of the convicted men gathered within the court premises.