The Supreme Court of Pakistan has confirmed the death penalty for US citizen Zahir Jaffer, who killed his girlfriend, Noor Mukaddam, brutally after she denied his marriage proposal. The heinous crime was committed on July 20, 2021, in Jaffer’s house in Islamabad.
Mukaddam, daughter of ex-Pakistani ambassador Shaukat Mukaddam and aged 27, was abducted, tortured, raped, and finally beheaded using a sharp object, as per the probe. After multiple attempts to flee on the night of the raid, Mukaddam was deterred from escape by domestic staff.
Jaffer, a relative of one of Pakistan’s most affluent families, was sentenced to death in 2022, while a gardener and a guard were given ten-year sentences for their involvement in aiding the offense. The death sentence of Jaffer was upheld on Tuesday by a Supreme Court bench headed by Justice Hashim Kakar but reduced his rape conviction to a life sentence.
The defense had contended that the mental health of Jaffer was not adequately assessed during the trial. Nevertheless, the court’s verdict highlighted the brutal nature of the crime. Justice Kakar commented on the heartless killing of a young woman and reflected the determination of the court to deliver justice.
The verdict has sparked outrage across the board about endemic violence against women in Pakistan, where conviction rates are less than 3 percent. The verdict was welcomed as a milestone by activists. Shafaq Zaidi, a close friend of Mukaddam, described it as “a victory for all women of Pakistan” and an indicator that the justice system can provide actual protection.
Legal analyst Zainab Shahid called the verdict a rare victory over gender-based violence, a departure from previous cases in which perpetrators were let off because of institutional failures. The “Justice for Noor” social media campaign emphasized that this verdict has a strong message to send that women’s lives matter and their voices will be heard not only for Noor but for all Pakistani women.
