SC cuts life sentence of woman convicted of husband murder

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Monday reduced the life sentence of a woman convicted of murdering her husband to 14 years in prison.

A bench headed by Justice Hashim Khan Kakar heard the appeal filed by Afshan Sahar against her life imprisonment sentence.

During the hearing, the defense counsel argued that the crime occurred in the context of prolonged domestic abuse.

According to the lawyer, the deceased husband was unemployed, frequently subjected his wife to violence, and repeatedly forced her to seek financial assistance from her parents.

The court was told that Afshan Sahar, a mother of four, often relied on support from her mother to meet household expenses. However, when her mother eventually refused to provide further financial assistance, the husband allegedly assaulted her again.

The prosecutor maintained that the wife struck her husband on the head, resulting in his death.

During the proceedings, Justice Hashim Khan Kakar remarked that cases involving husbands killing their wives were common, but this was the first case he had encountered in which a wife had killed her husband.

The judge also questioned whether the accused had confessed to the crime in her statement before the trial court.

Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim noted that two of the woman’s brothers had also been nominated in the case but were later acquitted. He observed that if the case had been decided solely on the basis of the prosecution’s evidence, all three accused might have been acquitted.

The defense further argued that the woman acted in response to threats to her dignity and safety.

The court was informed that Afshan Sahar has been in prison since 2016 and has already served nearly 10 years behind bars.

After hearing the arguments, the Supreme Court reduced her life sentence to 14 years’ imprisonment.

SC cuts life sentence of woman convicted of husband's murder