LHC Acquits Death-row Prisoner After Nearly Seven Years
LAHORE, (APP – UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – 9th Sep, 2026) The
Lahore
High Court (LHC) on Wednesday acquitted a death-row prisoner, Shahzad Ahmed, in a murder case, setting aside the sessions court’s verdict after finding serious weaknesses in the prosecution’s evidence.
A two-member bench comprising Justice Shehram Sarwar Chaudhry and Justice Sardar Akbar Ali Dogar announced the verdict on Shahzad Ahmed’s acquittal appeal.
Shahzad had been accused of murder and was sentenced to death by the trial court after completion of the trial. He subsequently challenged the conviction and death sentence before the Lahore High Court. During the proceedings, the defence counsel argued that the prosecution had failed to establish the presence of its alleged eyewitnesses at the scene of the incident.
He submitted that the statements of the witnesses, along with the other evidence on record, did not reliably establish the prosecution’s case. The counsel maintained that the trial court had awarded the death penalty without sufficient and concrete evidence, while the prosecution had failed to prove the charge against Shahzad beyond reasonable doubt.
However, female state counsel Rahat Majeed opposed the acquittal appeal, arguing that the evidence available on record pointed towards the accused’s guilt. She requested the court to uphold the death sentence awarded by the trial court.
After hearing arguments from both sides and examining the case record in detail, the court observed that the prosecution had failed to establish the alleged eyewitnesses’ presence at the crime scene through reliable evidence. The bench also noted shortcomings and weaknesses in the prosecution’s evidence and extended the benefit of doubt to Shahzad Ahmed.
Consequently, the court set aside the sessions court’s death sentence and ordered Shahzad Ahmed’s acquittal, nearly seven years after the case was instituted.
