Pakistan's parliament recently passed a significant resolution, urging the overturning of the death sentence handed down to former Prime Minister and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) founder, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, who was executed by the military regime of Gen Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq in 1979.
This resolution comes in the wake of a unanimous opinion issued by the Supreme Court on March 6, which concluded that Bhutto did not receive a fair trial and due process in his high-profile case.
Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was sentenced to death by the Lahore High Court on March 18, 1978, for his alleged involvement in the assassination of Ahmed Reza Kasuri, a founding member of the PPP. The parliamentary resolution, spearheaded by PPP's Shazia Marri, condemns Bhutto's trial and subsequent conviction as a "gross miscarriage of justice."
Acknowledging the relentless efforts of Bhutto's family, including Begum Nusrat Bhutto and Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, as well as PPP workers, the resolution pays homage to their sacrifices in seeking justice for Bhutto.
The Supreme Court's opinion, prompted by a special case submitted in 2011 by former President Asif Ali Zardari, Bhutto's son-in-law, calls for a reassessment of Bhutto's conviction. The resolution commends the court for acknowledging the glaring injustice inflicted upon Bhutto and demands the reversal of the unjust verdict.
Despite affirming the flaws in Bhutto's trial and appeal proceedings, the Supreme Court clarified that it lacked the authority to alter the death sentence due to constitutional constraints.
In addition to seeking official recognition of Bhutto as a "shaheed" (martyr) and a "National Democratic Hero," the resolution proposes the establishment of the "Nishan-e-Zulfikar Ali Bhutto" award to honor individuals who have valiantly advocated for democracy in Pakistan.
While the resolution has garnered support from most provincial assemblies and the Senate, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assembly, where the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) holds power under Prime Minister Imran Khan, has yet to endorse it.
