KARACHI – An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in the port city on Friday sentenced four suspects to life imprisonment on two counts in the high-profile murder case of rights activist Perween Rahman, who was gunned down in 2013.
Five accused, identified as Abdul Raheem Swati, Mohammad Imran Swati, Ayaz Shamzai alias Swati, Amjad Hussain Khan and Ahmed Khan alias Pappu Kashmiri, had been indicted in the case.
The ATC judge awarded a seven-year jail term to Imran Swati for facilitating the killers in the case.
The court had reserved its verdict on October 15 after recording evidence and final arguments in the case.
Rahman, who was leading the Orangi Pilot Project (OPP) and had devoted her life to improve the living standard of the city’s neighbourhoods, was killed near her office in Orangi Town on March 13, 2013.
Initially, a case for her murder was registered under Sections 302 (premeditated murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code at the Pirabad police station.
Later, Section 7 (punishment for acts of terrorism) of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, was added to the FIR on the basis of a judicial inquiry conducted on the orders of the Supreme Court.
