PESHAWAR
The Peshawar High Court (PHC) has overturned the acquittal of a man accused of murdering a woman after her son refused his friendship, sentencing him to life imprisonment.
Justice Sahibzada Allah on Saturday issued a detailed judgment on an appeal challenging the acquittal of the accused, Bahlol Ehsan. Police took the convict into custody and shifted him to jail following the verdict.
According to the judgment, the accused entered the house of complainant Shah Waheed in Kohat and opened fire on April 16, 2016, after being refused friendship.
The shooting killed the complainant’s mother and seriously injured the complainant and his sister. The incident occurred within the jurisdiction of the Ustarzai Police Station in Kohat.
An Additional District and Sessions Judge in Kohat had acquitted the accused on June 1, 2019. The complainant subsequently challenged the acquittal before the Peshawar High Court.
The High Court observed that the trial court had failed to properly assess different aspects of the evidence and had overlooked the cumulative effect of the prosecution’s evidence.
It ruled that the prosecution had successfully established its case through reliable and convincing evidence.
Allowing the appeal, the High Court sentenced the accused to life imprisonment for murder and awarded a total of 12 years’ imprisonment under other provisions of the law. The court also imposed fines totalling Rs900,000 for murder, attempted murder and other offences.
