Daniel Pearl murder case: SHC issues notices on contempt petition

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Thursday issued notices to the Chief Secretary Sindh and others in a contempt petition over detention of the accused of Daniel Pearl murder case, ARY News reported.

A bench of the high court had declared a notification with regard to detention of four accused in the case, Ahmed Omer Saeed Shaikh, co-accused Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil, as null and void and ordered their immediate release from the jail.

A contempt of court petition was filed against the provincial chief secretary, jail officials and others over the government’s failure in compliance of the court orders.

The court issued notices to the chief secretary, additional chief secretary over the contempt petition and summoned reply from them and the jail officials on January 07.

“Why the accused were not released over the court orders,” the bench asked the Advocate General Sindh. “Issue a notice we will submit a written reply over the matter,” the advocate general replied.

The bench while declaring the government notification as void had also ordered putting the names of accused Ahmed Omer Saeed Shaikh and others in the exit control list (ECL).

The court observed that the accused have been in jail for last 18 years and ordered the accused to appear as and when the court summon them after their release.

Provincial home department had detained the accused under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) on September 28.

Four convicts of the murder case, Ahmed Omer Saeed and others had moved the Sindh High Court (SHC) challenging their convictions handed down by the Hyderabad Anti-Terrorism Court in 2002, after finding them guilty of abducting and killing American Journalist Daniel Pearl.

The ATC had handed death sentence to main accused Ahmed Omer Saeed Shaikh and life sentences to other three accused.

The high court overturned the verdict of the ATC and acquitted convicts on April 02 this year.

The Sindh Government and the family of Daniel Pearl filed appeals against the high court verdict in Supreme Court and the case has been under hearing in the apex court.

The 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief of The Wall Street Journal, Daniel Pearl, was researching a story on religious extremists, in January 2002 in Karachi, when he was abducted and slain.