' TARIQ PARVEZ.KHAN, J.---On one hand family of deceased Dr. Javed Iqbal is in panic because the doctor has not reached his house as scheduled and therefore, they are worried. It is, therefore, that Sumair Javed Iqbal (P.W.2) doctor's son goes to Police 'Post Michni Gate attached to Police Station East Cantt. On 27-10-2001 where Shahinshah Khan, S.-I. (P.W.8) takes down his report through Daily Diary No,9 in respect of missing of the doctor.
' According to the statement of son of the doctor (deceased), his father was a Dentist running his clinic on 32 The Mall, Peshawar and his general practice is to sit in the clinic up to 8 p.m. On the relevant day the doctor telephones his residence at 7-30 p.m. That he shall be back to the house in time but because he did not arrive until 9-30 p.m. And also because the mobile telephone of the doctor was non-operational, therefore, the Daily Diary.
2. On the other hand, Mukhtiarullah, IHC of Police Station Tatara, Hayatabad (P.W.6) while on mobile Gasht gets information that in Sector-F/7, Phase 6-of Hayatabad a dead body is lying, he reaches the spot and finds the information correct when in the meanwhile Amir Muhammad, S.-I. Who was then S.H.O. Police Station Tatara also reaches the spot, he takes the photographs of the deceased and when the different Investigating Agencies interact, it transpires that the dead body found was that of Dr. Javed Iqbal. It was 28th October, 2001.
3. The investigation is in progress and it is 4th of November, 2001 that Ghulam Muhammad, D.S.P.
(P.W.13), Noor Muhammad, Inspector, C.I.A. (P.W.17), Murtaza Khan, S.-I. (P.W.10) and other police parties are all present near Chungi Chowk Bhana Mari and it is between 11-30 and 12-30 hours of the morning when accused Waqar-ul-Mulk driving a motor car bearing Number Plate ABN-590 Karachi is stopped and when asked could not produce any documents regarding its ownership.
From cursory examination of the chasis and engine it transpired that the Registration number of the said car is 1616 Peshawar, therefore, further interrogation is undertaken.
' In the presence of marginal witnesses besides others including Murtaza, S.-I., Noor Muhammad Khan, Inspector, C.I.A. On apprehension of the accused Investigating Officer takes into possession the fake Number Plate through memo. Exh.P.W.10/1. He also recovers blood-stained seat covers and prepares memo. Exh.P.W.10/2. There are found broken pieces of glasses inside the motor car which are taken into possession through memo. Exh.P.W.10/3. One empty of 30 Pistol bore is taken into possession when it was pointed out by the accused and was found stuck in the Switch-Board of the Car for which memo. Exh.P.W.10/4 is prepared.
' In the presence of Murtaza, S.-I. (P.W.10) accused has led the police, party to Amir Gul Plaza, Flat No,4 wherefrom besides other articles two Number Plates of the Motor Car carrying M-1616 Peshawar were recovered.
' Murtaza, S.-1. Has also witnessed the recovery of .30 bore pistol made on the pointation of accused Waqar-ul-Mulk for which memo. Exh.P.W.10/7 was prepared.
' Dead body of the deceased Dr. Javed Iqbal was sent to mortuary of Khyber Medical College and it was found that the cause of death was due to fire-arm injuries given in detail in post-mortem report Exh. P. W .9/3.
' Pistol recovered on the pointation of accused from the shop of Noor Khan (P.W.7) and an empty from the Dash Board of the Motor Car of the deceased again pointed out by the accused were both sent to the Fire-arm Expert and report Exh.P.W.17/3 confirmed their inter se matching.
' Through parcel No,1 blood-stained garments of the deceased were sent to the Chemical Laboratory. A Cash Memo. For the purchase of C.N.G. Having blood-stained was sent through parcel No,6. Similarly through parcel No,5 blood-stained seat covers of the car were also sent and it was ultimately opined that articles containing in all the three parcels had human blood and were of the same group.
' A mobile telephone allegedly owned by deceased doctor and after his murder sold to Iqtidar (P.W.11) was also recovered on the pointation of the accused on 6-11-2001.
4. Keeping in view the nature of offence, the manner it was committed as h has created an atmosphere of fear in the society in general, case was sent up for trial to learned Judge of Anti- Terrorism Court who vide his judgment dated 22-5-2002 found Waqar-ul-Mulk appellant guilty a the offence had awarded him sentence of death on two counts besides other sentences which was challenged in Criminal Appeal No,164 of 2002. Such appeal was allowed because of lacunas in judgment, conviction was set aside and case was remanded back by this Court and after doing the needful, as ordered, the learned Judge Anti-Terrorism Court has once again through judgment dated 16-11-2002 gave the finding of guilty and has convicted the appellant under section 302, P.P.C. Read with section of the Anti-Terrorism Act to the sentence of dearth. He has been further convicted and sentenced to three years' R.I. With a fine of Rs,10,000 under section 404, P.P.C. With further direction to pay Rs,one lac fifty thousand payable as 'compensation to the legal heirs of the deceased and such judgment of conviction and sentence now stands assailed through Criminal Appeal No,448 of 2002.
' We are also seized of Murder Reference No,30 of 2002 sent by Anti-Terrorism Court as required under the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.
5. Contentions of the learned counsel for the appellant are that admittedly it is a case of no eye- witness, that the apprehension of the appellant shown on 4-11-2001 with the car of the deceased is false, that the alleged recovery of pistol from the shop of Noor Khan P.W. Was not on the pointation of the accused whereas according to the statement of Noor Khan accused did not accompany the police and in fact he saw the accused with C.I.A. Police in the police station. It is argued that mobile telephone set in absence of SIM and in absence of identification parade held through relative of the deceased cannot be said to be the mobile set of the deceased doctor. Contention is raised that report of the Fire-arm Expert is also fabricated and despite the office of Fire-arm Expert situated within the city, the articles were sent on the second day of recovery. He has also challenged the recovery of empty from the motor car on the pointation of accused because according to the counsel for the defence no sane person would leave a stuck empty in the dash- board if he has committed the crime of murder. A C.N.G. Kit has been recovered on the pointation of the accused and it was argued that Muhammad Ayub P. W.16 has in no manner connected the kit with the motor car of the deceased. It was argued that the recovery of number plates of the motor car has been planted.
6. The upshot of the arguments of the learned counsel for the defence was that accused-appellant has been made a scapegoat in this case. The investigation was totally dishonest and case being that of circumstantial evidence it is necessary that before recording conviction all possibilities of false involvement should be excluded and that each, circumstance should constitute a link and when all the links put together shall constitute a complete chain and if one of the link is broken the result would be that the whole chain shall break. Lastly it was argued that sentence of death awarded is not warranted in law because charge of murder is not proved and at best conviction could have been only recorded under section 404, P.P.C. For possessing the vehicle that was stolen and belonging to the deceased.
7. Learned counsel appearing for the State and learned counsel for the complainant have argued that no mala fide of any of the police officials is borne out from the record. All incriminating articles were recovered on the pointation of the accused and were in the exclusive knowledge of the appellant and when articles recovered pursuant to the information furnished by the accused; would be relevant and admissible in evidence. It is argued that appellant has failed to show as to how he came into possession of motor car belonging to deceased and therefore, he stands legally linked with the commission of offence of murder and has been rightly convicted and sentenced.
8. Admitted facts in this case would be that there is no ocular account, no motive has been specified and there is no confession of the accused. The prosecution has relied on circumstantial evidence comprising of recovery of motor car belonging to the deceased from the possession of accused-appellant. They have relied on connecting circumstantial evidence like recovery of an empty from dash board of the said car and its later on matching with pistol allegedly recovered on the pointation of appellant from the shop of Noor Khan (P.W.7). They have also relied on sale of mobile telephone set by the appellant belonging to the deceased to P.W. Iqtidar. Prosecution also has produced evidence whereby accused has led the police party and on his pointation the original number plates of the motor car were recovered besides C.N.G. Kit and other articles belonging to motor car.
9. No doubt that in case of circumstantial evidence it is the rule of prudence which has now become almost a rule of law and has been epeatedly ruled by the Supreme Court of Pakistan since its inception that for basing conviction on capital charge and when the case rests on circumstantial evidence, before a conviction is recorded it is incumbent on the Court to first exclude all reasonable possibilities of false implication and shall reach the only conclusions that none but the appellant is guilty of the offence.
10. It has been decided in number of superior Courts' judgments that a circumstantial evidence should be taken as a chain of different events, every event shall be a link and each link should connect each other in such way and shape that they ultimately make one chain. But, where one link is missing it results into breaking of the whole chain.
11. Conscious of the above principle, we will analyse the evidence in this case on the touchstone of above principle and we may add that is not the length of the chain which connects the accused with the crime but it is the connection of more than one link which may constitute a chain. A chain may comprise of ten links or more but it may also comprise of less links but still would constitute a chain.
12. Much has been said about apprehension of the accused on 4-11-2001 and it has been challenged in view of statement of Noor Khan (P.W.7) who had stated that two days before the recovery of pistol accused has returned his pistol to the P.W. Which was taken by the accused 2/3 days before that. It is argued that if this period of four days is excluded then the arrest of the accused would be on 2-11-2001 and has been wrongly shown as 4th of November, 2001.
13. We can hardly agree with the contentions of the learned counsel for the appellant because P.W.
Noor Khan who was not a witness of record but was so stating from memory. From the police record the arrest of the accused could not be challenged nor it has been shaken in the testimony of relevant witnesses like D.S.P. Ghulam Muhammad, Noor Muhammad, Investigating Officer and Murtaza, S.-I.
14. We out of abundant caution would, however, exclude the recovery of C.N.G. Kit because it has not been connected with the motor car of the deceased as P.W. Muhammad Ayub has not uttered single word about its connection or ownership to be that of deceased Dr. Javed Iqbal.
15. We will also take out of consideration the alleged recovery of mobile telephone set belonging to the deceased not a discovery on the pointation but because Investigating Agency has failed to hold test identification parade regarding this incriminating article through widow or son of the deceased and because no SIM was found in it, therefore, it cannot be said as to whom this telephone belongs.
16. Noor Khan (P.W.7) from whose possession licensed pistol was recovered but on the pointation of the accused though deposed that accused was not accompanying the police and he only saw the accused while sitting in C.I.A. Headquarters but this appears to be a false statement given by the P.W. To help the accused as it is admitted by this P.W. That he was friendly towards Waqar-ul-Mulk.
Such-like concession if are against the record and if is inconsistent with the statement of Murtaza, S.-I. (P.W.10) and Noor Muhammad, Investigating Officer would be of no consequences and would have no favorable effect against the appellant.
' On the very day and time of arrest and on the pointation of accused-appellant an empty of 30 bore was recovered from inside the car stuck in the Dash Board, such empty has later on matched with the pistol recovered on the pointation of the accused from the shop of Noor Khan P.W., report whereof, is Exh.P.W.17/4, and because such articles were received by the Fire-arm Expert on 6-11- 2001 only one day delay would be a strong corroborative circumstance against the accused.
17. The convincing connectitg links of the prosecution start with the recovery of dead body at 9-30 a.m. On 28-10-2001 when Mukhtiarullah, IHC finds it lying in Phase-6 of Hayatabad.
' On 4-11-2001 during a Nakabandi the accused appellant who is driving a motor car bearing Number Plate ABN-590 Karachi is stopped, its chasis and engine number are checked and the seat covers of the car had blood-stained marks with corresponding bullet marks and pieces of glasses also having blood stains thereon.
18. Garments of the, deceased which were blood-stained were put into parcel No,1, the blood- stained seat covers of the car in parcel No,5 and it was opined by. The Chemical Examiner through report Exh.P.W.17/8 that the blood of parcel No,1 and of parcel No,5 was of human nature and of the same group. This connecting link of the dead body of deceased Dr. Javed lqbal and the seat covers of the motor car which was being driven by appellant is a strong piece of evidence bringing a close nexus between the death and the appellant.
' Accused Waqar-ul-Mulk has led police party to Flat No,4 in Amir Gul Plaza and on his pointation original number plates of the car of the deceased No,M-1616 Peshawar besides other accessories of the motor car was recovered whereafter on the pointation of the accused from Arshad Plaza and in the house of Noor Khan Khattak P.W. The crime pistol was recovered.
19. No doubt that all the above pointations and recoveries are in the nature of circumstances and we do not find any direct evidence of actual killing because of absence of eye-witnesses and because of no confession made by the appellant but when all these circumstances are put together they connect the appellant through the motor car of the deceased to the recovery of dead body of the deceased and when appellant could not create any dint in his apprehensions and where he could not extend any plausible explanation regarding possession of the car of the deceased and where neither the Investigating Agency nor deceased party has any animous against him not the burden of innocence but the burden of disprove the recovery of motor car belonging. To the deceased, would be on the accused failing which and while relying on strong circumstantial evidence the inescapable conclusion would be pointing towards the guilt of the accused appellant.
20. For the reasons stated above, we are convinced that in this case there is overwhelming unshaken circumstantial evidence fully supporting the case of the prosecution and each link of the circumstance is so interwoven that it makes a complete unbreakable chain where on one terminal is the dead body of deceased Dr. Javed Iqbal and on the other is accused appellant.
21. The death has been committed in a brutal manner for no fault of the deceased. The dead body was thrown in the posh area of Hayatabad inhabited mostly by educated people, the death is that of a doctor which has created sense of insecurity in general public, therefore, the appellant deserves capital punishment which has been rightly awarded by the learned trial Judge. His conviction and sentences both for charge of Qatl-i-Amd and for being found possession of property of the deceased are maintained. Appeal is dismissed. Murder Reference No,30 of 2002 is answered in affirmative.