MUHAMMAD YAQUB vs THE STATE and another
This matter arises from a petition for leave to appeal seeking the enhancement of a sentence from life imprisonment to death, alongside a time-barred jail petition by the convict seeking acquittal, both directed against a judgment of the Lahore High Court which had partly accepted an appeal by reducing the respondent's death sentence to life imprisonment for murder. The core legal questions involve whether mitigating circumstances such as motive related to family honor and the tender age of the offender justify the reduction of a death sentence, and whether the conviction was sustainable on merits. The Supreme Court held that the High Court properly exercised its discretion in considering the motive and the tender age of sixteen or seventeen years as mitigating circumstances, and found no illegality or material irregularity warranting interference, while also noting the jail petition was time-barred and without merit. The key principle laid down is that appellate courts have legitimate discretion to commute a death sentence to life imprisonment based on mitigating factors such as age and family honor motives, which will not be interfered with absent material irregularity.
- Whether tender age of the accused at the time of the occurrence can be considered as a mitigating circumstance for reducing a death sentence to life imprisonment?
- Whether a motive based on family honor can influence the sentencing discretion of the court in a murder case?
- Whether the Supreme Court will interfere with the High Court's discretion in confirming or declining to confirm a death sentence absent material irregularity?
1. ' WALI MUHAMMAD KHAN, J.---Muhammad Yaqub, petitioner herein, through Petition No,83-L/93, seeks leave to appeal against the judgment dated 21-12-1992 passed by a learned Division Bench of the Lahore High Court, whereby the appeal filed by Zahoor Hussain, respondent No,2, against his conviction and sentence of death for the murder of Muhammad Riaz brother of the petitioner/complainant, was partly accepted, the death sentence awarded to him was reduced to life imprisonment and the Murder Reference not confirmed. The petitioner prays for the setting aside of the judgment of the High Court and awarding death sentence to respondent No,2. Zahoor Hussain respondent No,2 has also preferred Jail Petition No,93/93 against the same judgment praying for setting aside the judgment of the High Court and acquitting him of the charge.
2. ' Through this judgment we propose to dispose of both the above petitions.
3. ' We have heard Shaikh Zamir Hussain, Advocate, for the petitioner in Criminal Petition No,83-L/93, and have perused the record of the case.
4. The learned High Court was influenced by the prosecution's own version that respondent No,2 suspected the deceased of having brought bad name to their family by cultivating illicit connection with his sister and acted to avenge his family honor. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the sister of the accused/respondent 2 had died about 7/8 months prior to the occurrence and the question of family honor did not arise. There is nothing on the record to show the cause of her death but the family honor could not vanish with her death and was bound to survive her death for some time. The learned High Court also considered the tender age of 16/17 years of the accused/respondent 2 at the time of occurrence as the mitigating circumstance. The High Court had discretion in the matter of confirming or declining to confirm the death sentence and we do not find any illegality or material irregularity in the exercise of this discretion by the High Court.
5. ' As regards the Jail Petition filed by the convict/respondent 2, the same is barred by 98 days.
6. Moreover, on merits too, the case against him is proved beyond reasonable doubt and the order of the trial Court as well as of the High Court being based on the proper appraisal of evidence is not open to interference by this Court.
7. ' Resultantly, both the petitions bearing No,Cr.P.83-L/93 and J.P. 93/93 are dismissed.
Cited by 3 cases
- WASEEM IQBAL vs ADDITIONAL INSPECTOR-GENERAL OF POLICE, INVESTIGATION BRANCH, PUNJAB, LAHORE and 3 otherss 2006 P Cr. L J 1942
- BASHIR and another vs THE STATE 2006.P Cr. L J 1945
- BASHIR Versus State 2006 PCRLJ 1945