Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Monday rejected a petition filed by the Sindh government to suspend a high court verdict that overturned the conviction of al-Qaeda leader Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh in the kidnapping and murder of Daniel Pearl in 2002, in a setback to the US efforts to get justice for the American journalist.
Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, was abducted and beheaded while he was in Pakistan investigating a story in 2002 on the alleged links between the country’’s powerful spy agency ISI and al-Qaeda.
On April 2, a two-judge Sindh High Court bench overturned the death sentence of British-born 46-year-old al-Qaeda leader, who was convicted in the abduction and murder of Pearl in 2002.
He has been in jail for the past 18 years.
The court also acquitted his three aides — Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil- serving life sentences in the case.
The Bench announced the verdict on the appeals filed by the four convicts 18 years ago.
The Sindh Government challenged the High Court judgment and on May 2 the slain journalist’s parents also approached the Supreme
Court against the acquittal of the convicts.
On Monday, a three member bench headed by Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed heard the appeals in Islamabad.
The apex court after initial hearing refused to suspend the Sindh High Court judgment and asked the provincial government to provide complete record of the case. It also said the petition contained irrelevant sections.
“We should be provided a complete record of the case,” said bench member Justice Manzoor Malik.
“I want to look at all the records so that I can understand all the points.”
The court adjourned the hearing for an indefinite period, after the Sindh government sought time to submit the record of the trial court.
The apex court ordered the counsel representing the Sindh government, Farooq H Naek, to submit the detailed record before the court.