ISLAMABAD
\nThe Supreme Court of Pakistan has acquitted an accused in a narcotics recovery case, setting aside his life imprisonment on the grounds that the prosecution failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
\nIn a written judgment authored by Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim, the Court ruled that the accused, Sardar Muhammad, was entitled to the benefit of doubt. It ordered that he be released forthwith if not required in any other case.
\nThe Court observed that the prosecution had failed to establish its case beyond a reasonable doubt, noting material and fundamental contradictions in the statements of prosecution witnesses. According to the judgment, discrepancies were found regarding the time and place of arrival of police witnesses at the scene, which undermined the credibility of the prosecution\u2019s case.
\nIt emphasized that in narcotics cases, it is essential for the prosecution to prove the safe custody and uninterrupted chain of custody of the recovered contraband from the time of recovery until its dispatch to the laboratory.<\/p>\n
The apex court further pointed out that the site plan of the place of occurrence and the relevant daily diary entries were not produced before the trial court.
\nIn the present case, the Court held that the prosecution failed to establish this chain of custody. Delay in the transfer of the seized material and gaps in the record proved fatal to the prosecution\u2019s case. The judgment also underscored that in cases carrying severe and deterrent punishments, the standard of proof must be stringent and free from any doubt.
\nThe case originated from a First Information Report registered at Loralai Police Station, alleging recovery of 15 kilograms of charas from the accused. The trial court had sentenced him to life imprisonment, a decision later upheld by the Balochistan High Court. However, the Supreme Court set aside the judgments of both courts and ordered the acquittal of the accused. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD The Supreme Court of Pakistan has acquitted an accused in a narcotics recovery case, setting aside his life imprisonment on the grounds that the prosecution failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. In a written judgment authored by Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim, the Court ruled that the accused, Sardar Muhammad, was entitled to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-534446","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-national"},"yoast_head":"\n