SAEEDUR RAHMAN vs THE STATE
This review petition was filed by the petitioner, Saeedur Rahman, seeking to challenge the Supreme Court's earlier dismissal of his jail petition regarding his conviction for murder. The petitioner had been convicted by the Additional Sessions Judge and sentenced to death, a decision upheld by the High Court and subsequently affirmed by the Supreme Court. In the review petition, the petitioner argued that the complainant had duped him into transferring land based on a promise of compromise, which failed to materialize, and contended that the eye-witnesses were inimical and the forensic evidence was potentially fabricated. The Supreme Court held that the petition was time-barred and that the petitioner failed to provide any evidence, such as affidavits or the presence of the complainant, to substantiate the alleged compromise. Furthermore, the Court ruled that the arguments regarding witness enmity and forensic tampering were conjectural and constituted an attempt to re-appreciate evidence, which is impermissible in review proceedings. The Court affirmed that such grounds do not satisfy the criteria for review under the Supreme Court Rules, 1956, and dismissed the petition.
- Can a review petition be entertained when it seeks to re-appreciate evidence already considered by the Court?
- Does an unsubstantiated claim of a compromise between parties constitute a valid ground for review of a criminal conviction?
- Are conjectural arguments regarding the potential manipulation of forensic evidence sufficient to warrant a review of a final judgment?
- Supreme Court Rules, 1956
ORDER
1. ' ASLAM RIAZ HUSSAIN, J.-This review petition by Saeedur Rahman is directed against the dismissal by this Court of his Jail Petition (No, 80-R of 1978).
2. ' The petitioner was tried by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Abbottabad, for the murder of Abdur Rashid by firing at him with a shotgun. He was found guilty and sentenced, inter alia, to death. His appeal before the High Court failed. Thereaftel, he filed a petition before this Court, through jail. The case was examined by two Judges of this Court and finding no merit in the petition the same was dismissed on 10th of March, 1979. The petitioner has now filed the present petition for review, through an Advocate.
3. ' Briefly stated, the prosecution case is that on 24th of February 1977 at about 4-30 p.m.
4. Muhammad Rafiq, P. W. Brother of the deceased, who is a young boy studying in the 10th class, was basking in the sun on the roof of his house when he saw Saeedur Rahman accused-petitioner firing at Abdur Rashid (deceased) with a shot-gun. Abdur Rashid was hit and fell down and the petitioner ran away. He was seen running away with his shot-gun by Muhammad Yaqub P. W. And Manzoor Elahi (not produced). Mohammad Rafiq ran to his uncle Ghulam Rahmani P. W. And informed him about the incident. The latter came to the spot and found Rashid lying dead. He then went to the police station and lodged the F. I. R. During the investigation an empty 12 bore shell was recovered from the spot. Saeedur Rahman accused-petitioner was also arrested. He produced his licensed shot-gun before the Investigating Officer. The Investigating Officer sent the gun and the empty shell to the Fire Arms Expert who reported that the crime empty had been fired from the gun produced by the petitioner. Post-mortem examination revealed that the deceased had died as a result of the fire-arm injury. The prosecution case is based mainly on the testimony of Mohammad Rafiq P. W. And Mohammad Yaqub P. W. ; the recovery of the crime empty and the petitioner's gun which matched each other, and the medical evidence. The petitioner, of course, denied his guilt but the two Courts below found that the prosecution case against him stood proved. This Court also, after examining the case, agreed with that view.
5. ' The present petition is barred by 31 days and the learned counsel for the petitioner did not make any prayer for condonation of delay before us. We, however, heard it on merits. The'main argument urged by him was that Ghulam Rahmani, complainant, had duped the petitioner into transfering him about 24 kanals of land on the promise that he (i.e,, Ghulam Rahmani, complainant) would declare before the Supreme Court that the parties were closely related and had compromised and forgiven the murder, but since neither he nor Ghulam Rahmani, complainant, came to know of the date of hearing of the jail petition by the Supreme Court, they could not appear and the aforementioned statement could not be made by Ghulam Rahmani. Not much weight can be given to this submission as it is well known that no date is fixed for hearing in jail petitions.
6. Moreover, the learned counsel has failed to support the aforementioned assertion either by producing Ghulam Rahmani, complainant in person or any affidavit or statement by him with respect to the alleged compromise. We cannot, therefore, give any consideration to this plea. The petitioner may, if so advised, raise this plea in his mercy petition supported by proper material to establish that the complainant party has forgiven the petitioner.
7. The learned counsel also submitted that the eye-witnesses in this case were inimical to the petitioner and that there was a possibility that the Investigating Officer might have fired a cartridge from the gun produced by the petitioner and then sent the gun and the empty shell to the fire- arms expert for examination. The last mentioned submission appears to be absolutely conjectural.
8. In any case, these contentions involve appreciation of evidence, which cannot be done at this stage. Moreover, these do not constitute any ground for review as envisaged by the Supreme Court Rules, 1956. For the foregoing reasons the petition is therefore dismissed.
Cited by 2 cases
- BACHA ZEB Versus State 2010 SCMR 1189
- NASRULLAH KHAN and 2 others vs STATE 2010 PLJ SC 881