• Military

• WMD Menu                           

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Prosecution demands capital punishment for all seven accused

ASSOCIATED PRESS OF PAKISTAN (21-03-2000) KARACHI, March 21 (APP) - The prosecution on Monday demanded from Anti Terrorist Court-1 capital punishment for all the seven accused including former premier Mian Nawaz Sharif in October 12 plane hijacking case. The prosecution said that the conspiracy hatched at the Prime Minister House to deny landing to flight PK-805 had endangered the lives of 198 passengers including 50 American students and Chief of Army Staff. The Advocate General Sindh Raja Qureshi urged ATC-1 headed by the judge Rehmat Hussain Jaffery that all the accused should be given maximum punishment within the meaning of Section 20 of Anti Terrorism Act (AT) 1997. Since the trial of the accused under Section 402-B of Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) was conducted under Anti Terrorism Act 1997, therefore the discretion of the Court in awarding lesser sentence stands diminished in the light of preamble, he added. Replying to a question by the Judge as to what was the maximum punishment, the AG Sindh quoted Section 402-B of PPC which said that whoever commits, or conspire or attempts to commit, or abet the commission of hijacking shall be punished with death or imprisonment for life, and forfeiture of property and fine. Quoting Section 20 of AT Act 1997, Raja Qureshi said a person convicted for an offence by the special court shall be awarded maximum punishment prescribed by law for the offence unless for reason to be recorded the Court decides to award a lesser punishment. Earlier, in his final arguments, he said the principal accused Mian Nawaz Sharif had hatched a conspiracy at the Prime Minister House in Islamabad on October 12, that COAS should not land on the soil of Pakistan as the accused had appointed Gen Ziauddin as new Chief of Army by retiring Gen Pervez Musharraf who was on an official tour to Sri Lanka. He said the principal accused hatched conspiracy with co-accused Shahbaz Sharif, Saifur Rehman, Saeed Mehdi at PM House Islamabad, and other co-accused Syed Ghous Ali Shah, Shahid Khaqan Abbassi, Rana Maqbool Ahmed and approver Aminullah Chaudhry in Karachi on telephone with the objective to hijack a PIA flight PK 805, to abduct and attempt to cause Qatl-e-Amad of 198 souls on board.

He said the principal accused had personally issued orders to Director General Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) Aminullah Chaudhry and PIA chairman Shahid Khaqan Abbassi on telephone that PK-805 should not land on the soil of Pakistan. He said after knowing the critical situation of fuel endurance, the principal accused ordered diversion of PK-805 to Nawabshah for refuelling and departure to Muscat. AG Sindh said when DG CAA insisted landing for PK-805 in Karachi due to critical fuel endurance, the principal accused refused to talk to him. Later, Military Secretary to PM Brig Javed Iqbal told Aminullah Chaudhry that "now the said flight could land at Karachi, isolated at the end of the runway with no embarkation of any passenger, refuelled and sent to Sharjah." He said the timely intervention of army enabled landing of PK-805, saving the lives of 198 souls on board. He said the alleged offence reflected in the charge framed by this Court stood committed from the point of time when the principal accused issued directions for diversion of PK-805 to any destination outside Pakistan, resulting into ingredient of Section 402-B, 109, 114, 324, 365 of PPC and Section 7(2) of AT Act 1997 being attracted and establishes the commission of charged offenses by all the accused persons collectively and individually. He said that there is a total and absolute absence of reasons for lawful closure of Karachi and Nawabshah Airports for PK-805 and not allowing landing. He said the accused persons being co-conspirators has taken steps for executing the said conspiracy which had resulted into striking terror, chaos, panic, fear and confusion to persons on board PK-805 and maintained that such acts were likely to result in death of 198 souls on board. He said co-conspirators had further engineered display of fire arms by using unlawful force through public servants and such committed terrorist act attracting the ingredients of sub-clause ii) to Section 7 of the AT Act 1997 and Section 324 PPC read with Section 109, 114 PPC. Raja Qureshi said that by unlawful refusal to PK-805 from landing at its designated airfield at its expected time of arrival (1855 hrs) the co-conspirator had abducted and kidnapped all 198 souls on board with intent to secretly and wrongfully confine 198 souls while it was hijacked on October 12, 1999. Referring to the statements of prosecution witnesses including star witness turned approver DG Civil Aviation Authority Aminullah Chaudhry, he said the commission of offence and abetment by the principal accused and co-accused has been established. Dilating upon the reasons for delay in lodging FIR, Raja Qureshi quoted the judgement of Lahore High Court 1994, and said the delay in lodging FIR is of no consequence if prosecution's case is otherwise established. The hearing was adjourned when the Advocate General Sindh was continuing his arguments for Tuesday.