Zulfiqar Ali Khan Executed 06 May 2015

Described as a model prisoner, Zulfiqar spent 16 years on death row after shooting two robbers in self-defence. During his prison time he helped educate and rehabilitate over 400 prisoners, 27 of who earned university degrees, 48 graduated from college, and 51 obtained matriculation certificates. Despite this, he was executed.

Zulfiqar grew up in a small village in a devoted and loving family. When he was 18-years-old, he joined the Pakistan Navy as a Physical Training Instructor (PTI). Zulfiqar excelled during his time in the navy and received many accommodations.

In 1998, on his way to visit relatives with his younger brother, Zulfiqar was held up in an armed robbery in a slum area on the outskirts of Islamabad. As a naval officer, Zulfiqar carried a gun and, in self-defence, shot two of the robbers.

Unable to afford a lawyer, Zulfiqar was represented by a court-appointed defence attorney at his trial. The lawyer asked Zulfikar for additional money and, when he wasn’t able to pay essentially abandoned the case. The lawyer never visited him outside of court hear his side of the story or to gather evidence. Falsified witness statements used by the prosecution went unchallenged. Without resources, Zulfikar was unable to find, or afford, an alternative lawyer and was sentenced to death by firing squad in 1999 by an Anti-Terrorism Court in Rawalpindi. He appealed and his Supreme Court appeal was rejected in 2002.

He spent 16 years on death row using the time to educate himself and helping to educate and rehabilitate over 400 prisoners, 27 of who earned university degrees, 48 graduated from college, and 51 obtained matriculation certificates.

On 24 March 2015, a black warrant was issued by the Anti-Terrorism Court stating he should be executed on 31 March 2015. On 31 March, JPP managed to get a last minute stay of execution from the Islamabad High Court. The jail refused to recognize the order and a bailiff has to rush to the court to get someone to issue a copy after business hours. Zulfikar was within three hours of execution and not allowed to see his lawyers.

Within a few weeks, a new black warrant was issued and Zulfikar’s pleas for mercy were not met. He was executed on 06 May 2015. His wife died of leukemia soon after he was sentenced and he is survived by his two daughters – now orphans.

Unfortunately, Zulfikar’s case is not an isolated one. There are thousands of examples of miscommunication, lack of policies and procedures, and lack of awareness of policies and procedures that do exist. The judiciary is a bureaucratic quagmire where prisoners “even those wrongfully accused” spend longer in jail than they should and can be put to death to clear a backlog of paperwork.

The President’s Office has stated that they will no longer consider mercy appeals from cases tried in Anti-Terrorism Courts which directly contravenes the constitutional rights of Pakistanis to have their mercy petitions considered.