LHC acquits man sentenced to life imprisonment in murder case

LAHORE, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jul, 2026) The Lahore High Court (LHC) has acquitted Shah Muhammad, who had been serving a life sentence in a murder case, after allowing his appeal and setting aside the trial court's judgment.

In a detailed 12-page verdict released on Wednesday, Chief Justice Aalia Neelum ruled that the prosecution had failed to prove the charge against the appellant beyond reasonable doubt. The court also dismissed the complainant's revision petition seeking enhancement of the sentence.

The judgment noted that the prosecution's case was marred by serious contradictions in the FIR, witness statements and the overall prosecution narrative, rendering the case doubtful.

The court held that the identification parade was neither reliable nor conducted in accordance with legal requirements. It observed that the witnesses had neither identified the accused nor provided any description of the suspects in the FIR, making the subsequent identification unsafe to rely upon.

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The verdict further stated that the extraordinary delay in the proceedings, deficiencies in the evidence and flaws in the investigation had created serious doubts about the prosecution's case. The court also declared the forensic evidence and the alleged recovery of the murder weapon from the accused unreliable, refusing to treat them as a basis for conviction.

Chief Justice Aalia Neelum observed that the benefit of the doubt is a legal right of an accused, not a concession. She reiterated that a criminal conviction can only be sustained when the prosecution proves its case beyond reasonable doubt, a standard that was not met in the present case.

The court directed the immediate release of Shah Muhammad, ordering prison authorities to set him free without delay if he is not required in any other case.