IMG1292Supreme-CourtThe Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the immediate removal of Ahmed Omar Sheikh, accused in the murder case of American journalist Daniel Pearl, from the death cell.
A day earlier, the apex court had extended the detention of Sheikh by one day on the request of the Sindh government to review his release.
On Tuesday, a three-member bench of the SC, headed by Justice Umar Ata Bandial, resumed hearing the Sindh government’s review petition. During the proceedings, the attorney general told the court that Sheikh is not an ordinary accused but a mastermind of terrorists and that he will disappear if released. Justice Munib Akhtar said the sacrifices of the armed forces are not denied, but the court is bound by the constitution. Justice Bandial remarked that Sheikh was accused of kidnapping Pearl. He asked the attorney general whether it had been proved that Sheikh was involved in terrorist activities. The attorney general argued that the federation has the power to detain dangerous criminals, to which Justice Sajjad Ali Shah said that Sheikh had already been illegally detained for a month. “The court cannot legalise your illegal actions,” Justice Shah told the attorney general. Justice Akhtar said it was not the dark ages that an accused should remain in jail even after 18 years, while Justice Shah said that the face of the body was not visible in the video of Daniel Pearl’s murder.
