The Supreme Court of Pakistan is scheduled to hear the review appeal of Zahir Jaffer next week. He was convicted of the murder and beheading of 27-year-old Noor Mukadam.
A three-member bench, headed by Justice Hashim Kakar and including Justices Salahuddin and Ishtiaq Ibrahim, will address the appeal on April 8.
Noor, the daughter of a former diplomat, was discovered dead in Islamabad in July 2021.
Investigations indicated that she had been subjected to torture prior to her death, leading to widespread national outrage concerning gender-based violence and the inequitable treatment under the law.
Zahir Jaffer received a death sentence from the trial court, a decision that was upheld by the Islamabad High Court, which also transformed his prison term for rape charges into an additional death sentence.
The Supreme Court affirmed his death sentence on May 20, 2025.
Justice Kakar delivered a concise judgment, reaffirming the trial court’s decisions regarding the rape charges and changing Jaffer’s 25-year sentence to life imprisonment.
The court also upheld the order for compensation to Noor’s family while reducing the sentences of Jaffer’s gardener and watchman, Jan Mohammad and Iftikhar, on the grounds that they had already served adequate time in prison.
Noor Mukadam case
Noor Mukadam, aged 27, was tragically tortured before being murdered and beheaded at the residence of Zahir Jaffar in Islamabad on July 20, 2021.
Shortly thereafter, Zahir, along with his parents and their staff members, was taken into custody.
Following a trial that lasted seven months, Zahir was convicted and sentenced to death. The staff members who were present during the crime received ten-year prison sentences.
Meanwhile, Zahir’s parents, who were accused of assisting him in the disposal of Noor Mukadam’s body, were acquitted by the court.
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