Sartaj alias Sartaja vs State S — 2024 YLR 2511 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH

Fields are extracted from the reported citation and judgment text. Where a detail is not stated in the record, it is not shown.

Sartaj alias Sartaja VS State S. 302(b)---Qatl-i-amd---Appreciation of evidence---Medical evidence, supporting eye-witnesses' evidence---Accused was charged for committing murder of the paternal uncle of complainant by firing---Medical evidence and medical reports fully supported the eye-witness/prosecution evidence---Medical evidence confirmed that the deceased died from at least three if not four gunshot wounds to the abdomen---No blackening was found around the wounds as the examination took place two days after the incident and the deceased's wounds were already covered with dressings and would have been cleaned, so it could not be proved that the accused did not fire at the deceased from a relatively close range as deposed by the eye-witnesses---Appeal against conviction was dismissed accordingly. Citation Name: 2024 YLR 2511 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH Sartaj alias Sartaja VS State S. 302(b)---Qatl-i-amd---Appreciation of evidence---Minor contradictions in the statements of witnesses---Inconsequential---Accused was charged for committing murder of the paternal uncle of complainant by firing---All the witnesses were consistent in their evidence and even if there were some contradictions in their evidence same contradictions were considered as minor in nature and not material and certainly not of such materiality so as to affect the prosecution case and the conviction of the accused---Evidence of the witnesses provided a believable corroborated unbroken chain of events from the time the eye-witnesses and the deceased were walking to the deceased's plot, to the accused shooting the deceased because he had filed FIR's against him to the accused absconding, to the death of the deceased on account of the firearm injuries which he received from the accused to the arrest of the accused in another Province and recovery of his pistol, and to his pistol producing a positive Forensic Science Laboratory Report with the empties recovered at the crime scene---Appeal against conviction was dismissed accordingly. Citation Name: 2024 YLR 2511 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH Sartaj alias Sartaja VS State S. 302(b)---Qatl-i-amd---Appreciation of evidence---Slight delay in lodging FIR plausibly explained---Accused was charged for committing murder of the paternal uncle of complainant by firing---First Information Report was lodged with promptitude after only one hour and 45 minutes of the incident---Such slight delay was caused because the complainant took the deceased to hospital for treatment in order to save his life and it was during that time at the hospital that he gave his S.154 Cr.P.C statement which later became the FIR and as such he had no time to consult with the police or anyone else in order to cook up a false case against the accused---Complainant's mind would have been in turmoil following the incident and at that point in time his main concern would have been the condition of his seriously injured uncle rather than putting together a false narrative in order to implicate the accused---Thus, it was found that there had been hardly any delay in lodging the FIR and even such slight delay had been fully explained---Appeal against conviction was dismissed accordingly. Citation Name: 2024 YLR 2511 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH Sartaj alias Sartaja VS State S. 302(b)---Qatl-i-amd---Appreciation of evidence---Sentence, quantum of---Accused was charged for committing murder of the paternal uncle of complainant by firing---With regard to sentencing, it was noted that the motive for the murder had been asserted and proven in that the accused wanted to take revenge from the deceased for lodging FIR's against him and the Court thus he shot the accused four times in a brutal and pre mediated manner in front of his family members and left him for dead---Accused was a habitual hardened criminal with at least 60 cases registered against him and the Court could not find any mitigating circumstance which would warrant a reduction in his sentence from the death penalty to life imprisonment and as such his death sentence was maintained---Appeal was dismissed accordingly. Citation Name: 2024 YLR 2511 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH Sartaj alias Sartaja VS State S. 302(b)---Qatl-i-amd---Appreciation of evidence---Substitution---Scope---Accused was charged for committing murder of the paternal uncle of complainant by firing---It did not appeal to logic, commonsense or reason that a son would let the real murderer of his father get away scot free and falsely implicate an innocent person by way of substitution---Appeal against conviction was dismissed accordingly. Citation Name: 2024 YLR 2511 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH Sartaj alias Sartaja VS State S. 302(b)---Qatl-i-amd---Appreciation of evidence---Police witnesses, evidence of---Reliance---Accused was charged for committing murder of the paternal uncle of complainant by firing---Record showed that it had not been proven through evidence that any particular police witnesses had any enmity or ill will towards the accused or had reason to falsely implicate him in the case for instance by planting a pistol on him---In such circumstances the evidence of the police witnesses could be fully relied upon---Appeal against conviction was dismissed accordingly. Citation Name: 2024 YLR 2511 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH Sartaj alias Sartaja VS State S. 302(b)---Qatl-i-amd---Appreciation of evidence---Ocular account proved---Accused was charged for committing murder of the paternal uncle of complainant by firing---Ocular account of the incident had been furnished by complainant, and the son and nephew of the deceased---From the evidence it transpired that complainant was related to the deceased and that there appeared to be some disputes between the accused and the deceased, however the complainant/eye-witness had no dispute or enmity with the accused---Thus, mere relationship of witness to the deceased was no reason to discard his evidence which had to be judged on its own worth---From the evidence of said eye-witness, it was clear that he knew the accused before the incident and it was a day light incident from relatively closed range and thus there was no case of mistaken identity and no need to hold an identification parade in order to determine the identity of the accused---Presence of said witness at the scene was corroborated by other witnesses---Said eye-witness was not a chance witness and he lived in the area and had every reason to accompany the deceased who was his uncle, to see his plot along with other relatives---Said witness gave his S. 154 Cr.P.C statement within one hour and 45 minutes of the incident which was not significantly improved on during his evidence---Said witness named the accused in his FIR along with the other eye-witnesses---Complainant gave his evidence in a natural manner and was not dented at all during cross-examination and as such his evidence was found to be reliable, trust worthy and confidence inspiring especially in respect of the identity of the accused---Accused could be convicted on the evidence of such eye-witness alone though it would be of assistance by way of caution, if there was some corroborative/supportive evidence---Other eye-witness was the son of deceased and his evidence corroborated complainant's evidence in all material aspects---Said witness was named in the FIR as an eye-witness---Another eye-witness was a nephew of the deceased and his evidence corroborated complainant and evidence of son of deceased in all material respects---Said witness was named in FIR as an eye-witness and his S. 161 Cr.P.C statement was recorded on the same day of the incident on which no material improvements were made during his evidence---Appeal against conviction was dismissed accordingly. Citation Name: 2024 YLR 2511 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH Sartaj alias Sartaja VS State S. 302(b)---Qatl-i-amd---Appreciation of evidence---Recovery of weapon of offence and crime empties---Reliance---Accused was charged for committing murder of the paternal uncle of complainant by firing---Record showed that the empties which were recovered at the scene led to a positive Forensic Science Laboratory even before the pistol was recovered from the Police Station of another Province where it had been recovered from the accused in a separate case---When the pistol was sent with the already recovered empties it was found that all 7 empties matched the pistol which was found in the possession of the accused for which he was under arrest in another Province which directly linked the accused to the murder of the deceased---Accused even had a license for the weapon which was his defence in the case in another Province, however he claimed in the trial that the weapon was foisted on him by the police which simply was not believable based on the particular facts and circumstances of the case---Appeal against conviction was dismissed accordingly.

Sartaj alias Sartaja vs State S — 2024 YLR 2511 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH

Case information

Judgment text as reported

Other judgments reported in 2024 YLR