Pak Supreme Court dismisses petition against death penalty

Pakistan's Supreme Court today dismissed a petition seeking abolition of the death penalty in the country.
Pakistan resumed imposing the death penalty in December after a Taliban attack on an army school in Peshawar that killed 150 people, mostly children.
Various rights groups have criticised the government for resuming the executions.
Barrister Zafarullah had filed a petition seeking the abolition of the death penalty arguing that capital punishment was contrary to the fundamental rights.
A three-member bench of the court headed by Justice Saqib Nisar dismissed the petition.
The judge said that right to life and liberty are not absolute in the Constitution of Pakistan.

He said that the death penalty was provided in the law and in accordance with the law, a person can be deprived of life.
The court asked the petitioner to approach the parliament for change of laws to abolish death penalty in the country.
There are more than 8,000 death-row prisoners in Pakistan and more than 110 have been executed since resumption of the death penalty.