PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court has ordered the trial court to rehear the 958 kilograms hashish smuggling case and set aside a life imprisonment sentence and fine imposed on two accused.
A PHC division bench, comprising Justices Yahya Afridi and Waqar Ahmad Seth, also ordered the release of the applicants on bail.
Earlier, the applicants’ counsels – barristers Noman Qaiser and Waqas Chamkani – said their clients, Irfan and Muntazir, were charged with smuggling narcotics.
The attorneys said Customs officials arrested the two suspects after claiming to have seized 958 kilogram hashish from a truck. The accused were awarded a life sentence and were imposed fine by a trial court.
The lawyers argued legal and technical factors were not taken into consideration during proceedings at the trial court, saying, “If the customs officials seized 958 kilogram’s, why were only 10 gram sent to the laboratory?” Qaiser asked. He said that under the law, officials should have sent a 10-gramme sample from every packet.
