Supreme Court acquits man in ransom kidnapping case

The Supreme Court has acquitted Abdul Razzaq in a kidnapping-for-ransom case after 12 years. The court accepted his appeal and overturned his life imprisonment sentence.

A two-member bench gave Razzaq the benefit of the doubt. The court found weaknesses in the evidence presented against him and ruled that the prosecution had failed to establish the case beyond reasonable doubt.

Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim authored the seven-page judgment. The court noted that a land dispute was already ongoing between the parties involved in the case.

The judgment also highlighted the lack of an eyewitness to the alleged kidnapping. It said that no person, including the complainant, had witnessed the alleged abduction.

The Supreme Court also questioned the alleged recovery of Rs300,000 from Razzaq. According to the judgment, the recovery was doubtful and the money allegedly obtained as ransom had no identifying marks.

The court said these circumstances created serious doubts about the prosecution’s case. Razzaq was therefore given the benefit of the doubt and acquitted.

The case dates back to 2014. A kidnapping-for-ransom case was registered against four suspects in Narowal that year.

The trial court later convicted all four accused. It sentenced them to life imprisonment and ordered the confiscation of their properties.

The matter was subsequently taken to the Lahore High Court. The high court acquitted three of the accused but upheld Razzaq’s life imprisonment sentence.

Razzaq then challenged the high court’s decision before the Supreme Court. After examining the evidence and circumstances of the case, the apex court accepted his appeal.

The Supreme Court has now set aside Razzaq’s life sentence and ordered his acquittal after more than a decade of legal proceedings.