Indian death row spy in Pakistan, Sarabjit Singh has filed a fresh appeal to the President seeking mercy, on the occasion of Pakistan’s Independence Day on August 14, his lawyer Awais Sheikh said on Friday.
Sheikh, who met Sarabjit in Lahore jail, in an email to the prisoner’s daughter Swapandeep, said that her father had signed the letter addressed to Zardari requesting his mercy on the 65th Independence Day of Pakistan. Sheikh quoted Sarabjit as saying that he was very disappointed when the recent news about his release turned out to be wrong. Sheikh’s email was forwarded to former Indian Supreme Court Chief Justice Markandey Katju, who had lobbied for the release of veteran Pakistani scientist Khalil Chishty from a prison in Rajasthan recently.
Justice Katju wrote back, saying the conviction of Sarabjit was ‘flawed’ and demanded his immediate release. “I have carefully studied Sarabjit’s case and am convinced that he was not guilty of the charge against him in the Lahore bomb blast case; the main prosecution witness Shaukat Salim, had retracted his statement saying it was obtained under duress,” he said adding, “the other evidence was Sarabjit’s alleged ‘confession’ but we all know how such ‘confessions’ are obtained in our countries (by third degree methods).” He said it was unfortunate that “both our countries often regard each other’s citizens as devils, and I strongly believe that both Khalil Chishty and Sarabjit were victims of that mindset.’’ Justice Katju said that he had sent several letters to Zardari in this regard, but received no response. He also sent copies of his email to senators Babar and Iqbal Haider, as well as Asma Jehangir, president of the Supreme Court Bar Association and to Chaudhry Fawad Husain, the special assistant to the prime minister of Pakistan with a request to obtain justice for Sarabjit.
