Islamabad: Supreme Court of Pakistan on Thursday upheld the Sindh High Court (SHC) verdict to release accused in the Daniel Pearl murder case and ordered to release Umar Shiekh and others.
A larger bench of the SC chaired by Justice Umar Atta Bandial heard the petition to stop release of the accused involved in the American journalist Daniel Pearl murder case filed by the Sindh government and parents of the journalist.
During course of the hearing Sindh government in a concealed enveloped provided sensitive information and advocate general Sindh apprised the court that Umar Sheikh has links with defunct organizations adding that we have facts but these can not be proved in the court.
Justice Umar Atta Bandial asked that the material provided to the court not presented before any forum and the information which never came on record how we can review it? he asked that if the state has information why didn’t it make anti-state case on Umar Sheikh? the court added that the government never ever declared Umar Sheikh as an agent of an enemy.
The court after hearing reserved the verdict and announced it after some time and rejected the Sindh government appeals to stop the release of the accused.
The court with a majority of 2-1 announced verdict to release Umar Sheikh immediately.
It is pertinent to mention here that the US journalist Daneil Pearl had been killed after his abduction back in 2002 in Karachi. Special anti-terrorism court had given death sentence to Umar Sheikh and life imprisonment to three others. While Sindh High Court had changed death sentence to seven years imprisonment and ordered release of three others after 18 years.
