The Supreme Court upheld on Tuesday the death sentence of Zahir Jaffer for the murder of Noor Mukadam, reported AFP.
Pakistani-American Zahir Jaffer, the son of a wealthy industrialist, attacked 27-year-old Noor Mukadam at his sprawling Islamabad mansion in july 2021 after she refused his marriage proposal – torturing her with a knuckleduster and using a “sharp-edged weapon” to behead her, according to AFP.
She was the daughter of diplomat Shaukat Mukadam who has remained Pakistan’s ambassador to South Korea and Kazakhstan.
He was convicted of rape and murder in 2022 but his legal team appealed arguing that he was suffering from mental health issues.
“This is a victory for all the women of Pakistan. It shows that our justice system can deliver justice and should give women more confidence in the legal process,” Shafaq Zaidi, a childhood friend of Mukadam, told AFP outside the court.
“This was our last resort, and it’s hard to put into words what this outcome means to us.”
A three-member bench, headed by Justice Hashim Kakar and comprising Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Ali Baqar Najafi heard Barrister Salman Safdar, Zahir’s counsel argument.
Advocate Shah Khawar was present on behalf of Noor’s father and also presented his arguments.
Background
Noor was found murdered at a residence in Sector F-7/4.
A first information report (FIR) was registered against Zahir under Section 302 (premeditated murder) of the Pakistan Penal Code on the complaint of the victim’s father.
As per the FIR, Shaukat said Noor called to tell them that she was travelling to Lahore with some friends and would return in a day or two. On Tuesday afternoon, the complainant said he received a call from Zahir, who informed Shaukat that Noor was not with him, the FIR said.
Noor Mukadam’s father demands capital punishment for Zahir Jaffer
At around 10pm the same day, the victim’s father received a call from Kohsar police station, informing him that Noor had been murdered.
She had made repeated attempts to escape the night she was killed, but was blocked by two members of Jaffer’s household staff, added AFP.
Police subsequently took the complainant to Zahir’s house where he discovered that his “daughter has been brutally murdered with a sharp-edged weapon and beheaded”, according to the FIR.
In 2022, Jaffer’s parents, Zakir Jaffer and Asmat Adamjee, were found not guilty of attempting to cover up the crime.
The two staff members were sentenced to 10 years for abetting murder.
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