Latest news with #Zahir
Asia News Network
2 days ago
- Asia News Network
In Pakistan, board sought as Zahir Jaffer on death row for Noor Mukadam's murder preparing mercy plea
July 21, 2025 ISLAMABAD – Zahir Zakir Jaffer, who was convicted of the gruesome murder of Noor Mukadam and sentenced to death, is preparing for a presidential mercy petition, according to a series of letters seen by as jail authorities have requested the formation of a medical board to evaluate his condition. Noor, aged 27 years, was found murdered at Zahir's Islamabad residence in July 2021, with the probe revealing she was tortured before being beheaded. Zahir's death sentence by the trial court had been upheld by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in 2023. In May, the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence handed by two courts previously over the murder charges under Section 302B (premeditated murder) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC). After the ruling by the apex court, a presidential pardon under Article 45 of the Constitution could possibly provide Zahir pardon, or reprieve, or remit, suspend or commute his sentence. According to the letters, which are addressed to the hospital director at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) from the superintendent at Adiala Jail, Zahir requires an opinion from a medical or psychiatric board before submitting a presidential mercy petition. 'The appeal of above mentioned Confirmed Condemned Prisoner (Zahir) was pending at [the] Supreme Court of Pakistan and the same has been dismissed,' the letter, dated July 8, read. 'Now the mercy petition of [the] subject cited Confirmed Condemned Prisoner has to be submitted before the Honourable President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. For that, the medical board and psychiatric board opinion is mandatory.' The letter requested that a time and date be chosen for the medical and psychiatric boards to come to Adiala and examine Zahir. The superintendent made the same request in another letter dated July 14. In response to the first letter, Pims stated in a document seen by that Dr Shafqat Nawaz from the psychiatry department and Dr Amir Naveed from the neurology department will comprise the medical board. Zahir was not only convicted of the murder, but was also sentenced to 25 years of rigorous imprisonment along with a fine of Rs200,000 under Section 376 (punishment for rape) of the PPC. In October last year, Noor's father had urged the apex court to take up the murder case pending for more than one and a half years.
The Hindu
12-07-2025
- The Hindu
Protection order issued for a woman invoking newly amended TN Prohibition of Harassment of Women (Amendment) Act
For the first time in the city, a protection order under the recently amended Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women (Amendment) Act 2025, which bars an accused from establishing contact with the victim, was issued in a case booked at Maduravoyal Station. Police claimed that it was the first protection order issued in the city police limits. Police said Zahir Hussain, 32, from Tiruvannamalai was arrested by Maduravoyal Police for blackmailing and harassing a 27-year-old woman on June 24. Investigation revealed that the woman and Zahir, became acquainted with each other when they were working together for two years. After learning that her family were looking for alliance and she distanced herself from him, he followed her and threatened to stop her marriage by uploading pictures of her with him on social media. She lodged the complaint with the police and he was arrested on charges under provisions of Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women (Amendment) Act 2025 and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Based on directions from the City Police Commissioner Maduravoyal police requested the Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) Central Chennai to issue a protection order in favour of the victim, and obtained the order on Friday. Recently in January 2025 , the Tamil Nadu Government had amended the old Tamil Nadu's Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act 1998 to make the law more effective and robust in tune with the present times. Accordingly, a provision was made in Tamil Nadu, which envisaged the issuance of a Protection Order in favour of a woman wherein the accused would be prohibited from attempting to communicate with her in any form including electronic and the breach of the same had been made as recognizable crime, said a senior police officer.
India Today
07-06-2025
- India Today
Kashmir calling: Why Omar Abdullah went cycling, cable-car riding
(NOTE: This article was originally published in the India Today issue dated June 16, 2025)It took years of Centre's push for better infrastructure, incentives to local industry and the sedulous dissemination of a feelgood narrative, helped by a dip in terrorism—it was an entire conspiracy of virtues that revived Jammu and Kashmir as a tourism hub. The Pahalgam terror attack ripped apart that patchwork quilt woven since 2019. The urgent question now is, how to revive that revival?advertisement It's an unenviable task. As scared tourists stay away, summer hotel bookings are mostly cancelled, and large-scale layoffs in the hospitality sector are spreading misery. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has clearly deemed the situation grim enough to lead a full counter-charge, but he is seeking to do it with a touch of May 27, he chose to hold a cabinet meeting right there on ground zero: Pahalgam. In the evening, he went on a cycle ride through its streets with sons Zahir and Zamir. Next day, cabinet in tow, the CM visited ski-resort Gulmarg, then took a cable car ride before the cameras. After Eid on June 7, the government will organise a Walkathon around Dal Lake in Srinagar and a water sports event on the A record 3.5 million tourists visited J&K in 2024; the sector adds 7 per cent to its GDP. Enthused locals, who invested in hotels and homestays, are unable to repay loans. The J&K government has petitioned the Centre to help these minister Amit Shah, too,visited J&K on May 29-31. Agenda: to secure the Amarnath yatra that begins on July 3. A 50,000-strong detail will guard the routes to the cave, via Pahalgam and Ganderbal. There's zero tolerance for to India Today MagazineMust Watch
Daily Mail
05-06-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
The small boat migrant trying to smuggle himself OUT of Britain: Afghan chronicles his life of 'depression, isolation and poverty' in the UK after crossing the Channel in 2024
This is the moment an Afghan small boat migrant tries to smuggle himself out of Britain on a lorry after being left feeling 'depressed and isolated' by life in the UK. Zahir has made four attempts to sneak into HGVs leaving the Port of Dover in a bid to relocate to Germany, but has failed each time and now sleeps in a London park. The 29-year-old said he fled Afghanistan when the Taliban found out his family had helped supply food to British and American forces. He was granted asylum in France and had a job in a slaughterhouse before paying smugglers €1,500 (£1,260) to take him over the Channel to the UK in August 2024. But he now bitterly regrets this decision and says the idealised picture he was given of life in Britain has not turned out to be the reality - even as record numbers of migrants continue arriving here from France. Zahir, who did not provide his surname, now wants to get out of the country as soon as possible by stowing away in a lorry to the Continent. 'It was a big mistake. I came here because of my mum – she was always saying ''we helped them so they will help you''.' The Afghan began crying as he told of feeling severely depressed after being removed to a remote area of the UK. Zahir also complained of not being allowed to work while his asylum claim was processed. 'I used to say ''hello, how are you?' to people but they weren't interested. Nobody has offered me the chance to go to college to learn English. I told the Home Office I was very depressed,' he said. 'I didn't mind living there, it's that there were just four people [in the accommodation]. Nobody would talk to me so how can I live my life? I couldn't speak English.' Asylum seekers can receive up to £3,000 if they agree to return to their home country. But Zahir believes he will be killed if he goes back to Afghanistan and wants to go to Germany instead to reunite with family friends. The first time he tried to hide in a lorry leaving Dover he was discovered during a random Border Force check. The other three times he was seen by the drivers themselves. The asylum seeker had been living in Home Office accommodation before deciding to leave and go to London, where he knew other Afghans. But this means he is now cut off from official support and is now living in a park in London, where he sleeps under a children's slide and relies on food donated by locals. 'My main priority is accommodation, and I just really want to sleep. The park is not safe for me. Drug addicts are asking me for cigarettes,' he said. Zahir took his initial decision to flee Afghanistan after the Taliban came to power in 2021 and found official records that showed his father and brother had been working at a Western military base. They found his father and interrogated him about his children's whereabouts before killing him. Zahir said they also murdered his brother and shared a picture of his body that he keeps on his mobile phone. After travelling through Iran, Turkey, Greece, Bosnia, Serbia, Croatia and Italy he made it to France, where he was granted asylum and worked in a slaughterhouse in Toulouse. He puts his decision to go to the UK partly down to the influence of his mother, who said he should go there 'because they are good for humanity'. After contacting Kurdish people smugglers, Zahir described making his way across the Channel in an overcrowded boat with 70 people onboard. The story of Zahir, revealed to The National, parallels with that of 25-year-old Alaa Eldin, who revealed last year how he was living under a rowing boat on a beach in Kent. The Syrian had been trying to escape the UK since last summer when he was evicted from a Home Office hotel in Leeds. Admittedly, both their stories are extremely rare – with far more asylum seekers continuing to travel to Britain by chancing their lives in the Channel. Sir Keir Starmer has admitted the public has 'every right to be angry' about the issue after more than a thousand migrants made the journey in a single day for the first time this year. Home Office data showed 1,194 migrants arrived in 18 boats on Saturday. But Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch described Sir Keir's words as 'rubbish', claiming that even Defence Secretary John Healey had acknowledged ministers had 'lost control' of the borders. Saturday's figures were the first time daily crossings topped a thousand in 2025, and prompted Mr Healey to claim Britain had 'lost control' over the last five years, implicating the former Tory government. Writing on social media site X on Monday, the Prime Minister said: 'You have every right to be angry about small boat crossings. 'I'm angry too. We are ramping up our efforts to smash the people smuggling gangs at source.' He claimed hundreds of boats and engines had been 'seized', raids on illegal working were up, and 'almost 30,000 people' had been returned. But Mrs Badenoch hit back, responding: 'Rubbish! Even the Defence Secretary admits the govt has 'lost control' of our borders.' Small boat arrivals are 'up 95% from this point in 2023', she said, and claimed ministers had 'scrapped the only viable deterrent': the previous Conservative government's Rwanda plan. Sir Keir had earlier insisted the Rwanda plan 'didn't deter anybody', after his decision to scrap it was highlighted while he visited Glasgow for a major defence announcement. He added: 'I'm not up for gimmicks. I'm up for the hard work of working with partners, enhancing the powers that law enforcement have, in my determination to take down the gangs that are running this vile trade.' Saturday's crossings brought the provisional annual total so far of migrants who have made the journey to 14,811. This is 42 per cent higher than the same point last year (10,448) and 95% up from the same point in 2023 (7,610). It is still lower than the highest daily total of 1,305 arrivals since data began in 2018, which was recorded on September 3, 2022.
Express Tribune
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
'This is for every woman'
Following four years of a legal battle in the Noor Mukadam case, the Supreme Court of Pakistan upheld Zahir Jaffer's death sentence on Tuesday. Led by Justice Hashim Kakar, three members including Justices Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Ali Baqar Najafi presided over the bench for the third hearing of Zahir's appeal against his death sentence, which it later dismissed. Zahir's death sentence by the trial court had already been upheld by the Islamabad High Court. "This is a victory for all the women of Pakistan. It shows that our justice system can deliver justice and should give women more confidence in the legal process," Noor's friend, Shafaq Zaidi, told AFP. "This was our last resort, and it's hard to put into words what this outcome means to us." Under Article 45, the power to grant Zahir pardon, reprieve and respite, and to remit, suspend or commute his sentence now lies with the President. "After four long years of relentless struggle, we finally have #JusticeForNoor," said the Instagram statement by handle Justice For Noor, run by the deceased's friends. "This verdict is more than a decision - it is a powerful reminder that women's lives matter, their voices will be heard, and their stories will not be silenced. This is not just for Noor. This is for every woman in Pakistan." Artists weigh in Artists and activists were also quick to laud the decision regarding the case, which caused nationwide outrage after it was first brought to light in 2021. The news prompted reactions from various celebrities. Mahira Khan reshared the post on Instagram Stories with a dove emoji, while Mawra Hocane wrote, "Justice for Noor, served." Aiman Khan offered a simple prayer: "Alhamdulillah." Also sharing the news on Instagram Stories, Dananeer Mobeen wrote, "No amount of torture and punishment will ever be enough for this monster. Rest in peace, Noor." Meanwhile, Osman Khalid Butt penned his thoughts on X (formerly Twitter). Referring to Noor's father, he wrote, "For almost four years, Shaukat uncle kept reassuring us that he had full faith in the judicial system. Alhamdulillah, the Supreme Court has upheld Zahir's death sentence today after a strong rebuttal by the prosecution team. I would like to thank the SC for honouring his belief that, in the end, justice would triumph." In a different note, Osman reassessed the dominance of justice over privilege, reminding his followers that Noor's family won this battle against an influential perpetrator. "The assumption that both parties were 'equally powerful', and that Noor's background alone secured her justice, is not only incorrect, but it also takes away from landmark judgement," he observed. "That Zahir's conviction was upheld despite his family's reach and legal resources is the real story." The Ehde Wafa actor stressed that the ruling has set a powerful precedent, warning privileged criminals that they can't easily flee their crimes and that their status will grant them no leniency when it comes to gender-based violence. "As a lawyer friend once said: it's not the background of a victim that prejudices a case, but that of the perpetrator, who is then let off." He acknowledged that the verdict wasn't inevitable and that the defence had prepared an "exhaustive" case for not just a reduced sentence but for Zahir's complete acquittal. "Every legal loophole that could be exploited, was." Admitting that he holds some grievances, he added, "I have strong objections to some of the statements made by the SC bench (which I'll discuss separately). However, the court upheld the death sentence despite minor procedural and protocol flaws in evidence recovery. Justice prevailed over red-tape protocols." Osman concluded that the case will be used as a strong source for all future cases of a similar "heinous nature", carving out a path for other victims to be brought to justice. "It is a roadmap for all victims who might be silenced or dismissed. Recognise and celebrate that." Bittersweet sentiments Noor was 27 years old when she was found brutally murdered inside Zahir's residence in Islamabad's F-7/4 sector. Further investigation revealed that, prior to her death, she had been tortured by a knuckleduster and beheaded. The case prompted an outpouring of sympathy and grief towards the victim, her friends, and family - especially her father, former ambassador Shaukat Ali Mukadam, who fought long and hard to bring his daughter's killer to justice. The recent news has reignited the internet's emphatic outcry against femicide. Relief over the SC ruling hung in the balance, as many social media users reluctantly celebrated the new development. "Justice delayed but served. Thinking of both Noor and her father today. This is a country where fathers routinely kill their own daughters in the name of so-called honour, but Noor's father fought tirelessly for justice for her even after she was gone. May her family find peace now," an X user hoped. Another wrote, "Noor Mukadam will never come home. But today, justice did. Zahir Jaffer's final appeal has been rejected. His death sentence stands. Let this verdict echo: women are not disposable. Her voice became a reckoning. This is for every woman who was ever silenced."
