ISLAMABAD: A district and sessions court in Islamabad on Monday dismissed three petitions, including one against the Islamabad Inspector General of Police (IGP) Mohammad Ahsan Younas, put forward by Zahir Jaffer, the main accused in the Noor Mukadam murder case.
On February 3, Zahir Jaffer’s advocate Sikandar Zulqarnain had filed three petitions in the court, one of them against the IG Islamabad. The petition was filed after a clarification issued by the capital police last month regarding the investigating officer’s (IO) cross-examination.
In a press release, the police had said that media reports “misinterpreted” January 24 proceedings of the case, when the IO was cross-examined, and gave the impression that an attempt was being made to give benefit to the main murder accused.
The police statement had clarified the IO’s statements as reported in the media and gave more context to his answers given during his cross-examination by Zahir’s lawyer.
Moreover, the police statement said, “very strong pieces of forensic evidence” were available against Zahir, and that “the investigation is committed to seek justice for Noor.”
Presenting arguments in court today, prosecutor Rana Hasan Abbas said the IGP and other police officers did not hold a press conference but had issued a press release on Twitter. He assured the judge that no further clarifications would be issued by the police and requested the court to dismiss Zahir’s plea.
While lawyer Shahryar Nawaz Khan, who represented Zahir at the hearing, was presenting his arguments on the matter, Additional Sessions Judge Ata Rabbani said police’s clarification was not issued over court proceedings but on erroneous reporting by the media.
At that, Khan raised the question whether the IGP could issue a clarification in case of wrong reporting by the media. Following the arguments, Judge Rabbani initially reserved his verdicts on all three pleas and later dismissed all of them.
The murder
The prime suspect in the murder of Noor Mukadam, Zahir, was formally charged for the crime by an Islamabad court in October 2021. Besides him, two of the family’s employees — Jamil and Jan Mohammad — were also indicted, along with Zahoor.
Noor Mukadam, a 27-year-old woman, was murdered on July 20 within the limits of the Kohsar police station in Islamabad’s F-7 area.
A case of murder was later registered at the same police station by Noor’s father, former Pakistani ambassador Shaukat Ali Mukadam.
The Islamabad police arrested suspect Zahir on the night of July 20 from his house where, according to Noor’s parents, he killed her with a sharp instrument and severed her head.
