Islamabad (HRNW)- The Supreme Court of Pakistan has acquitted a father who had been sentenced to death for allegedly poisoning his young son, overturning the verdicts of both the trial court and the High Court.
In a written judgment issued by Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim, the court ordered the immediate release of the accused, stating that the prosecution failed to prove the charges beyond reasonable doubt.
According to the verdict, a father poisoning his own young son is against human nature and normal behavior, and the prosecution could not establish a clear motive for the alleged crime. The court also noted that pesticides used for cotton crops were present in the house, and the four-year-old child could have accidentally consumed the substance, as a child of that age cannot distinguish between poisonous and drinkable liquids.
The Supreme Court observed that the statements of eyewitnesses contained contradictions and unnatural elements, and they failed to provide a clear explanation for their presence at the scene, making them coincidental witnesses. The judgment also pointed out discrepancies between the doctor’s testimony and witness statements regarding the color of the child’s clothes, and criticized witnesses for not searching the room or checking utensils, which raised doubts about their presence.
The court further stated that the unexplained delay in registering the FIR cast serious doubts on the authenticity of the case, adding that under criminal law even the slightest doubt entitles an accused to acquittal.
The case dates back to August 2019 in Sukkur, where four-year-old Mudassar alias Methu allegedly died after poisoning. The father, Sultan alias Babu Jatoi, had been accused of giving the child a glass of poison in front of witnesses. The child’s maternal uncle filed the case at Sangi Police Station, after which the trial court sentenced the father to death, a verdict later upheld by the High Court before being overturned by the Supreme Court.
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