Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto didn't get a fair trial, Pakistan's top court rules

Bhutto was hanged in 1979 after a trial under the military regime of late General Zia-ul-Haq

Former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto didn't get a fair trial, Pakistan's top court rules

PAKISTAN's Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday (6) that former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who was hanged 44 year ago after being convicted of murder, didn't get a fair trial.

Bhutto, the founder of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) now run by his grandson and former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, was hanged in 1979 after a trial under the military regime of late General Zia-ul-Haq.


"We didn't find that the fair trial and due process requirements were met," said Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa in remarks telecast live of the ruling that he said was a unanimous decision by a nine-member bench headed by him.

Prime minister Shehbaz Sharif hailed the ruling. "It is a positive development that a wrong done by a court has been corrected by a court," he said in a statement from his office.

The ruling came in response to a judicial reference filed by Bhutto Zardari's father, Asif Ali Zardari, during his tenure as president in 2011. It sought an opinion by the top court on revisiting the death sentence awarded to the PPP founder.

"Our family waited three generations to hear these words," Bhutto Zardari said later in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The court will issue a detailed order later.

"It is an admission of colossal miscarriage of justice under Zia's martial law regime," said Yousuf Nazar, London-based political commentator and a close aide of the late Benazir Bhutto, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's daughter and also a former prime minister. She was assassinated in 2007.

Rights groups say Haq's 11 years of dictatorship were marked by an assault on democracy, persecution and jailing of PPP workers and public flogging of opponents and critics.

Nazar said the regime also pushed the conservative Muslim nation into extremism and militancy by propping up and backing militant groups to fight a US proxy war against the then Soviet Union in Afghanistan.

"It led to an unprecedented level of support for and patronage of religious extremists at the state level," he said.

(Reuters)

More For You

Air India

The airline said the aircraft landed safely and was being inspected 'as a matter of abundant precaution'.

Getty

Delhi-bound Air India Dreamliner returns to Hong Kong mid-air due to technical issue

AN AIR INDIA Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner flying from Hong Kong to New Delhi returned to Hong Kong shortly after takeoff on Monday due to a suspected technical issue.

This incident comes days after an Air India flight to London, also a Boeing 787-8, crashed in Ahmedabad just after takeoff, killing 241 of the 242 people on board.

Keep ReadingShow less
Starmer-Getty

Starmer said earlier on Sunday that he had dropped his initial opposition to a national inquiry in favour of one being led by Louise Casey, a member of the parliament’s upper house. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Police crackdown on grooming gangs following national inquiry announcement

AUTHORITIES have announced a nationwide police operation targeting grooming gangs suspected of sexually exploiting thousands of girls and young women over several decades.

The announcement came hours after prime minister Keir Starmer said a national inquiry would be launched into the scandal, which recently drew attention from Elon Musk.

Keep ReadingShow less
british-airways

The airline did not provide details on the departure time, number of passengers or crew on board, or how long the flight was in the air before returning. (Representational image: Getty Images)

Getty Images

British Airways Chennai flight returns to London mid-air due to technical issue

A BRITISH AIRWAYS flight bound for Chennai returned to London mid-air on Sunday after reporting a technical issue.

The airline said the aircraft landed safely and passengers and crew disembarked normally. “The aircraft returned to Heathrow as a standard precaution after reports of a technical issue,” British Airways said in a statement.

Keep ReadingShow less
Siddhashram leads interfaith tribute to Ahmedabad plane crash victims

Gareth Thomas MP

Siddhashram leads interfaith tribute to Ahmedabad plane crash victims

Mahesh Liloriya

In the wake of the tragic plane crash in Ahmedabad on June 12, London came together in an emotional outpouring of grief and unity at the Siddhashram Shakti Centre in Harrow. Over two solemn days, the revered spiritual haven hosted a series of powerful ceremonies led by His Holiness Rajrajeshwar Guruji, drawing together faith leaders, public figures, and residents from across communities.

On the day of the tragedy, Guruji led a spiritually charged recitation of the Hanuman Chalisa 12 times, joined by a team of spiritual practitioners from India. The prayer created a deep atmosphere of collective mourning and healing.

Keep ReadingShow less