Noor Mukadam | Pakistan

The National Commission on the Status of Women (NCSW), a statutory body working for women rights, on Friday condemned the “misogynistic and irresponsible remarks” made by Justice Ali Baqar Najafi on the Noor Mukadam case, saying that they reflected a “harmful mindset that shifts responsibility away from the perpetrators of violence and onto women themselves”. Justice Najafi — a member of the three-judge bench of the Supreme Court that had upheld the death penalty awarded to Noor’s murderer — attributed the ghastly 2021 murder to what he described as a vice prevalent in society. In his additional note, which surfaced on Wednesday, Justice Najafi upheld the sentence handed to Zahir and observed that “the present case is a direct result of a vice spreading in the upper society which we know as ‘living relationship’ [sic]”. It appeared the judge was referring to a live-in relationship, where two unmarried individuals in a romantic relationship cohabitate. The jud­ge also observed that societal compulsions in such...

Justice Ali Baqar Najafi, who is now part of the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC), has observed that the Noor Mukadam case is the direct result of a “vice” spreading in society known as “living relationship”, it emerged on Wednesday. It appeared the judge was referring to a live-in relationship, where two unmarried individuals in a romantic relationship cohabitate. Noor, aged 27 years, was found murdered at the Islamabad residence of Zahir Zakir Jaffer in July 2021. In May, a three-judge Supreme Court bench, led by Justice Hashim Kakar and including Justices Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Najafi, had upheld the death sentence awarded to Zahir, who was convicted by an Islamabad trial court in 2022. Last month, the apex court had taken up Zakir’s review petition challenging the capital punishment awarded to him. During the hearing, Justice Najafi told senior counsel Khawaja Haris Ahmed, representing the convict, that it would be more appropriate for him to start arguments after going through the additional note he had n...

Comments from judges part of the Supreme Court’s bench that upheld Zahir Jaffer’s death sentence in the Noor Mukadam murder case once again stirred strong reactions on Wednesday. Noor, aged 27 years, was found murdered at Zahir’s Islamabad residence in July 2021, with the probe revealing she was brutally tortured before being beheaded. Not only had Zahir’s death sentence been upheld by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in 2023, but by a three-member bench of the SC as well on May 20 this year. In an additional note released today, one of those judges, Justice Ali Baqar Najafi, stood by the SC judgment but remarked that the “case is a direct result of a vice spreading in the upper society” known as a live-in relationship. He went on to say that such ties “defy not only the law of the land but also the personal law” under Sharia, and termed them a “direct revolt” against God. The judge even cautioned the younger generation about “horrible consequences”, specifically noting that the case was a “topic for the social...

Zahir Zakir Jaffer on Tuesday sought a review of the Supreme Court verdict that upheld his death sentence for the gruesome 2021 murder of Noor Mukadam in Islamabad. Noor, aged 27 years, was found murdered at Zahir’s Islamabad residence in July 2021, with the probe revealing she was tortured by him before being beheaded. Zahir’s death sentence by the trial court had already been upheld by the Islamabad High Court (IHC). The 47-page review petition, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, was filed by Advocate Khawaja Haris on behalf of Zahir under Article 188 of the Constitution (review of judgments or orders by SC). The state and Noor’s father, Shaukat Ali Muqadam, were made the respondents. The petition contended that the issue of Zahir’s alleged “unsoundness of mind or mental capacity” that was raised before the SC in an application had not been addressed and was “given short shrift”. It further said that “hype created on social media […] constantly created hatred towards the petitioner throughout the i...

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 Dawn.com 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 ...

“It’s brought me some closure,” said Shafaq Zaidi, a school friend of Noor Mukadam, reacting to the Supreme Court’s May 20 verdict upholding both the life sentence and death penalty for Noor’s killer, Zahir Jaffer. “Nothing can bring Noor back, but this decision offers a sense of justice — not just for her, but for every woman in Pakistan who’s been told her life doesn’t matter,” Zaidi told Inter Press Service (IPS) over the phone from Islamabad. “It’s been a long and painful journey — four years of fighting through the sessions court, high court, and finally, the Supreme Court.” Echoing a similar sentiment, rights activist Zohra Yusuf said, “It’s satisfying that the SC upheld the verdict,” but added that the crime’s brutality left little room for relief. “It was so horrific that one can’t even celebrate the judgment,” she said, referring to the “extreme” sadism Noor endured — tortured with a knuckleduster, raped, and beheaded with a sharp weapon on July 20, 2021. Yusuf also pointed out that the “background” ...

ISLAMABAD - The Supreme Court of Pakistan Tuesday upheld the death sentence of Zahir Jaffer for the murder of Noor Mukadam.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the death sentence of Zahir Jaffer for the gruesome murder of Noor Mukadam nearly four years ago that had shaken the nation. After the ruling by the top court, a presidential pardon under Article 45 of the Constitution could possibly provide Zahir pardon, or reprieve, or remit, suspend or commute his sentence. 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 already been upheld by the Islamabad High Court (IHC). View this post on Instagram A three-member bench, led by Justice Hashim Kakar and including Justices Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Ali Baqar Najafi, presided today over the third hearing of Zahir’s appeal against his death sentence. The bench upheld Zahir’s death sentence handed by two courts previously over the murder charges under Section 302(b) (premeditated murder) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC). However, it converted the IHC...

The Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the death sentence of Zahir Jaffer for the brutal murder of Noor Mukadam, while altering some of the other charges in its final verdict on the widely followed case.

Justice Hashim Kakar observed on Monday that Noor Mukadam was “mercilessly murdered” as the Supreme Court took up accused Zahir Jaffer’s appeal against his death sentence. 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 was upheld by the Islamabad High Court (IHC), which had also turned his jail term over rape charges into a second death penalty. Justice Kakar was leading a three-member bench, which included Justices Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Ali Baqar Najafi. Barrister Salman Safdar appeared as Zahir’s counsel while Advocate Shah Khawar was present on behalf of Noor’s father, retired diplomat Shaukat Mukadam. The accused’s lawyer contended that no medical board was formed to assess his client’s mental state. The hearing was adjourned till tomorrow, with both sides’ counsels expected to present their arguments. During the previous hearing, Safdar had sought more time from t...

The Supreme Court on Monday adjourned the hearing of Zahir Jaffer’s appeal against his death sentence in the Noor Mukadam murder case to May 19, following mutual agreement between the legal teams.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan is set to hear the appeal against Zahir Jaffer’s death sentence in the Noor Mukadam murder case on May 13, according to its latest cause list, it emerged on Sunday. Noor, 27, was found murdered at a residence in Islamabad’s upscale Sector F-7/4 on July 20, 2021. A first information report (FIR) was registered later the same day against Zahir Jaffer, who was arrested from the site of the murder. In February 2022, a district and sessions judge convicted Jaffer of murdering Mukadam, handing him the death penalty along with 25 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs200,000. His household staff, Iftikhar and Jameel — co-accused in the case — were each sentenced to 10 years in prison, while all other suspects, including Jaffer’s parents and TherapyWorks employees, were acquitted. According to the cause list available on the Supreme Court of Pakistan’s website, “the hearing on the appeal against Jaffer’s death sentence will be held on May 13.” Justice Hashim Kakar will head a th...