Zardari acquitted in double-murder charge

KARACHI: A Pakistani court on Monday acquitted PPP Chairman Asif Ali Zardari in the double murder of a retired judge and his son in 1996, citing lack of evidence.
    
Zardari, against whom four murder cases have been registered in the past, was named a co-accused in the murder of former Justice Nizam Ahmed and his son Nadeem Ahmed, who were killed outside their residence in Karachi on June 10, 1996.
    
The PPP leader's legal counsel Shahdat Awan said the acquittal came as no evidence was provided by the prosecution.
    
Special public prosecutor Naimat Ali Randhawa also admitted that "there was no evidence in this case and Mr Zardari's defence was strong".
    
The killing of Justice Ahmed was attributed to a dispute over a plot of land, whose commercialisation was opposed by him.
    
Judge Soofia Latif, however, said cases against the other accused, Bilal Sheikh, Babar Sindu and Akhtar Pirzada will continue and the next hearing has been scheduled for March 26.
    
Zardari has also been acquitted in a murder case involving former chairman of Pakistan Steel, Sajjad Hussain, in 2004.
    
The murder cases of Mir Murtaza Bhutto and Alam Baloch are still pending before the sessions courts of Hyderabad and Karachi respectively.
   
In recent days, Zardari has been cleared in a number of corruption and criminal cases filed against him by previous governments.
    
He took charge of the PPP after the assassination of his wife, party Chairman Benazir Bhutto, on December 27 in Rawalpindi.