The Supreme Court of Pakistan has rejected the appeal filed by Zahir Jaffer, upholding his death sentence in the high-profile Noor Mukadam murder case. Justice Hashim Kakar delivered the brief verdict, which maintains the capital punishment under the murder charges.
According to the court’s decision, while the death sentence for murder remains intact, Zahir Jaffer’s sentence in the rape case has been reduced to life imprisonment. The sentence for kidnapping was also revised, lowering it from ten years to just one year. Additionally, the court reaffirmed the order for Jaffer to pay compensation to the victim’s family.
The court also ruled that the sentences already served by Jaffer’s household staff — gardener Jan Mohammad and security guard Iftikhar — were sufficient. The co-accused are expected to be released upon issuance of the written verdict.
A three-member bench headed by Justice Hashim Kakar, and including Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Justice Ali Baqar Najafi, heard the final arguments in the appeals filed against the punishments awarded in the case.
Zahir Jaffer’s counsel, Barrister Salman Safdar, argued that the prosecution’s case relied heavily on CCTV footage and the DVR, and insisted that evidence must be beyond reasonable doubt. He questioned the authenticity and admissibility of the footage, claiming that the video was not properly played in the Islamabad High Court.
Lawyers representing the co-accused — Jaffer’s gardener and watchman — argued that their clients merely prevented Noor Mukadam from leaving the premises and had no active role in the murder. However, the bench remarked that if they had not stopped her, the incident might have been avoided.
Justice Hashim Kakar commented, “What was the need to go beyond your job description for a salary?”
After the arguments concluded and a recess was observed, the court reconvened to announce the verdict.
Case Background
Noor Mukadam, a 27-year-old daughter of former diplomat Shaukat Mukadam, was brutally murdered on July 20, 2021, at a residence in Islamabad’s upscale Sector F-7/4. Zahir Jaffer was arrested from the scene the same day, and a case was registered under Section 302 (premeditated murder) of the Pakistan Penal Code on the complaint of the victim’s father.
On October 14, 2021, the court indicted Zahir Jaffer along with 11 others, including his parents and domestic staff — gardener Jan Mohammad, watchman Iftikhar, and cook Jameel. Several employees of Therapy Works, a counselling and rehabilitation center, were also named.
The trial commenced on October 20, 2021, and lasted over four months. Testimonies from 19 witnesses were recorded. During the proceedings, Jaffer attempted to plead insanity, but medical evaluations declared him mentally fit.
On February 24, 2022, an Islamabad district and sessions court handed Zahir Jaffer the death penalty for the gruesome murder and ordered him to pay Rs. 500,000 as compensation to the victim’s family.
The Islamabad High Court later upheld the trial court’s verdict, dismissing all appeals filed by Zahir Jaffer and the co-accused. The High Court had also converted Jaffer’s 25-year sentence for rape into a second death penalty.
With the Supreme Court now maintaining the murder verdict and reducing the rape sentence to life imprisonment, the long and closely-watched case enters its final phase of legal closure.
