Law: Pakistan Penal Code, 1860

Section: 302(b),449

Law: Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898

Section: 544-A

Law: Constitution of Pakistan, 1973

Section: 9, 14, 25

Law: Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939

Section:

Law: Muslim Family Laws Ordinance, 1961

Section:

Summary The Supreme Court dismissed the jail petition of convict Wasim Abbas, refusing leave to appeal and upholding his conviction and death sentence for the murder of his former wife. Core Points Wasim Abbas was convicted under section 302(b) PPC for murdering his former wife, Shehnaz Bibi, and sentenced to death as ta'zir, plus Rs.500,000 compensation under section 544-A Cr.P.C. (default: 6 months S.I.). He was also convicted under section 449 PPC (house-trespass) and sentenced to 10 years R.I. with a fine of Rs.50,000 (default: 6 months S.I.), all sentences running concurrently. The occurrence took place on 11.10.2020 at about 3:00 p.m., when the petitioner, armed with a .30 bore pistol and two unidentified accomplices, trespassed into the complainant's house and fired multiple shots at the deceased, inflicting six wounds on her abdomen, hand, thighs, and back. The motive was resentment: the deceased had obtained an ex parte decree of dissolution of marriage just two days earlier (09.10.2020). The ocular account of Mst. Irshad Begum (PW-8) and Mst. Naeem Bibi (PW-9), inmates of the deceased's parental house, was found reliable and confidence-inspiring; the occurrence in broad daylight ruled out mistaken identity. The crime weapon was recovered on the petitioner's pointation, and the empties matched the weapon in ballistic examination, lending strong support to the ocular account. The Court held that a woman seeking legal dissolution of marriage is exercising a fundamental right, and violence against her for doing so must be met with the full rigour of the law. No extenuating or mitigating circumstances were found; the murder was brutal, calculated, premeditated, and committed inside the sanctity of the deceased's home within 48 hours of the decree. The concurrent findings of the courts below were well-reasoned, with no perversity or misreading of evidence, so the petition was dismissed and leave refused. Laws and Sections   Law / Section Provision Application in Case Section 302(b) PPC Murder (Qatl-i-Amd) punishable with death as ta'zir Conviction for murdering former wife; death sentence imposed Section 449 PPC House-trespass…