Court reserves decision in Obaid K2 appeal against sentence for Rangers killing

 

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court has reserved its verdict on the appeal filed by convict Obaid alias K2 against his sentence in the 27-year-old case of a Rangers official’s killing, ARY News reported.

During the hearing, Justice Omar Sial questioned why the accused had not been arrested earlier despite the murder taking place in Karachi nearly three decades ago. He remarked that from the then Inspector General of Police to the government, all were responsible for ensuring the arrest and imprisonment of the accused.

The defence lawyer argued that all suspects arrested from MQM headquarters Nine Zero had been released, while only Obaid K2 remained in jail since his arrest in 2015, which was formally recorded in 2021.

Justice Omar Sial observed that the record clearly reflected the accused’s actions and questioned the defence’s claims.

Prosecutor Iqbal Awan stated that the accused had already confessed to the crime and that the Anti-Terrorism Court had awarded the sentence in accordance with the law. He maintained that Obaid K2 was not entitled to acquittal.

The prosecution also submitted various court rulings related to similar cases. After hearing the arguments from both sides, the Sindh High Court reserved its decision.

Also Read: ATC convicts Obaid K2 in Rangers’ official murder case

Earlier, the Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) sentenced Obaid alias K2 a total of 40 years in prison after he was found guilty of murdering a Rangers official in Karachi.

According to the Karachi police officials, the accused arrested from Nine Zero, Obaid alias K2, was found guilty of the murder committed back in 1998 with his associates.

The accused, along with his associates, planned a target killing operation against a Rangers official in the Liaquatabad area of Karachi.

The court also ordered him to pay Rs 500,000 in compensation to the family members of the deceased.

The police spokesperson highlighted that the accused – Nadir Shah and Obaid – were convicted in the case back in 2002, but at the time of the sentencing, Obaid K2 went into hiding and was eventually arrested during the 90 [Azizabad] operation in 2015.

However, on the petition of the accused, the Supreme Court declared the trial court’s punishment null and void.