Zain murder case: Chief justice takes notice of Kanju’s release

Directs authorities to seal all records pertaining to the case

ISLAMABAD: Supreme Court chief justice on Friday took notice of the Zain murder case in which five accused, including Mustafa Kanju, were acquitted by an anti-terrorism court in Lahore.

According to a statement issued by Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali’s office, the judge directed authorities to seal all records pertaining to the case. He also ordered officials to present the complete records of the case before the apex court.

On Tuesday, an Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) acquitted five accused including Mustafa Kanju, son of former state minister Siddiq Kanju, and his guards namely Ikramullah, Asif, Saifullah and Sadiq after eight prosecution witnesses, including Sohail Afzal, complainant of the FIR, denied recognising the accused in the Zain murder case.

Earlier this year, Kanju allegedly opened fire on a vehicle near Lahore’s Cavalry Ground area, killing Zain and leaving a passerby injured after a fiery argument.

During previous proceedings, the plaintiff had recorded his statement contending he did not recognise the accused clearly as he reached at the spot after one-and-half hour of the murder.

The counsel for the accused had also told the court in previous proceedings that a compromise was being negotiated between the two parties.

The complainant, who happens to be the uncle of the deceased, had earlier filed an FIR in South Cantt police station under Section 302,324,148,149 of PPC and 7 of the ATA.

Kanju has maintained that he did not intend to kill anyone, adding that his opponents were trying to concoct a fake case against him. He claimed that Zain was killed in the crossfire, not from his bullet.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 31^st, 2015.