Zubair Qureshi
A District and Sessions Court of Islamabad on Tuesday sentenced three accused to life imprisonment for murdering a British national of Pakistan’s origin Barrister Fahad Malik in Islamabad six years ago.
The accused were produced before the court where Sessions Judge Atta Rabbani read out the judgment.
The verdict in the high profile murder case was announced in strict security as family members, friends and members of civil society had been alleging the ‘murderers’ were influential people and were trying to obstruct the judicial process. However, after waiting for six years, finally the judgment came and the court announced its verdict stating that the prosecution had proved its case against the accused persons, namely Raja Arshad Mehmood, Noman Yaqoob Khokhar and Raja Hashim Khan, “beyond any shadow of a doubt”.
It may be noted that Barrister Fahad Malik was murdered on August 15, 2016 in the Shalimar area of Islamabad police station. His trial case dragged on for six years, with Public Prosecutor Rana Hassan Abbas pursuing the case.
“They created fear and committed riot, they in the prosecution of their common object committed intentional murder of Fahad Malik, caused injury to the complainant Malik Tariq Ayub with a firearm weapon with the intention to kill him,” stated the judgment.
Chaudhry Nisar Ali, the then Interior Minister at the time of murder of Fahad Malik had taken a firm stand refusing to accept any pressure or influence from any side as the accused belong to influential political families and directed the police and the prosecution to follow as per law.
