RAQIB KHAN vs THE STATE
This petition for leave to appeal challenged the order of the Peshawar High Court, which upheld the petitioner's conviction under Section 13-E of the Pakistan Arms Ordinance 1965, sentencing him to two years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine. The core legal question was whether the testimony of police witnesses regarding the recovery of an unlicensed pistol from the petitioner could be relied upon to sustain a conviction. The Supreme Court held that the conviction was sound, rejecting the argument that police witnesses are inherently unreliable. The Court emphasized that the recovery was corroborated by the S.H.O.'s testimony and the circumstances of the arrest, which occurred immediately after the petitioner was chased following the commission of a murder. The key principle laid down is that the testimony of police officers regarding the recovery of incriminating evidence is not to be discarded solely due to their official status, especially when their accounts are consistent, credible, and corroborated by other evidence on record.
- Can the testimony of police officers regarding the recovery of an unlicensed weapon be discarded solely because they are police officials?
- Is the recovery of a weapon from an accused valid when witnessed by police officers who apprehended the accused immediately after a crime?
- Section 13-E, Pakistan Arms Ordinance 1965
ORDER
' MUHAMMAD BASHIR JEHANGIRI, J.---The petitioner has been aggrieved by an order of the Peshawar High Court, Peshawar, maintaining his conviction "under section 13-E of the Pakistan Arms Ordinance (XX of 1965) and his sentence to rigorous imprisonment for two years and a fine of Rs.1,000 or in default to undergo further simple imprisonment for three months.
2. A pistol of '32 bore was recovered from the petitioner on 16-12-1994 at about 12-45 p.m. In the Cattle Fair of village Ahmadabad with which he had committed the murder of one Haji Noor Khan of village Warana Mir Hassan Khel, District Karak. Two police constables, namely Hafizur Rehman and Abdullah Shah had witnessed the recovery memo. Exh.PC one of whom had stated that the pistol had been recovered from the petitioner while he was running away from the spot after committing a murder with it. His testimony is corroborated by evidence of Gul Raees Khan, S.H.O.
(P.W.3). Both of them were cross-examined at length but nothing could be elicited so as to cast doubt on the veracity of their depositions.
3. We have heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and perused the record with his assistance:
4. The contention that the two witnesses of recovery of the unlicensed '32 bore pistol from the possession of the petitioner being police officers were not worthy of reliance is not a reasonable ground for disbelieving them particularly when they had apprehended the petitioner after he was given a chase for 180 paces in the Cattle Fair and had fired to death Haji Noor Khan deceased.
5. There is no substance in this petition, and it is accordingly dismissed.