The Supreme Court of Pakistan has expressed concerns over delays in finalizing a Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) agreement with Kenya, a crucial step in the investigation of journalist Arshad Sharif’s murder.
A six-member constitutional bench, headed by Justice Aminuddin Khan, heard the suo motu case on Friday, as reported by *Express News*. During the hearing, the Additional Attorney General (AAG) informed the court that the MLA agreement had been signed and would be forwarded for presidential approval within a month.
Justice Hassan Azhar Rizvi questioned why the agreement, signed on December 10, 2023, had not yet been ratified. Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail raised the possibility of requiring daily progress reports to ensure timely action. The bench also referenced Pakistan’s extradition of Daesh commander Sharifullah to the United States, despite the absence of a formal prisoner exchange treaty, highlighting inconsistencies in the government’s approach.
“A journalist was brutally murdered, yet the Pakistani government has failed to support his family in Kenya,” Justice Rizvi remarked.
The Interior Ministry’s joint secretary stated that the Foreign Ministry had been notified about the agreement on February 27. This prompted further questions from the bench regarding the two-month delay between the last hearing and the notification.
Arshad Sharif’s widow, Javeria Siddique, informed the court that Kenya’s High Court had ordered action against police officers involved in the murder, but the Kenyan government had appealed the decision. She emphasized that Pakistan had neither intervened nor provided any assistance in the case.
Justice Mandokhail questioned, “If a woman is fighting this case alone in Kenya, why is the government hesitant to support her?”
The AAG argued that Pakistan’s access to the crime scene in Kenya was essential for the investigation but had not been granted. He stressed that Pakistan could only become a party to the case once the MLA agreement was fully implemented.
Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar noted that the suo motu case had been pending for years. The counsel representing Arshad Sharif’s mother requested a copy of the fact-finding report, to which the AAG responded that it had already been leaked to the media.
The Supreme Court adjourned the hearing for one month, seeking an update on the agreement’s approval process.
Arshad Sharif, a prominent journalist, had moved to Kenya in self-imposed exile following multiple legal cases against him in Pakistan. His murder in October 2022 sparked a legal battle in Kenya, where a court ruled that police had acted unlawfully in his death.
The case, initiated by Sharif’s widow, Javeria Siddique, alongside Kenyan journalist groups, accused top police and legal officials of unlawfully killing Sharif and failing to conduct a proper investigation. Sharif was shot in the head when Kenyan police opened fire on his vehicle, claiming it was a case of mistaken identity. His death drew international condemnation and renewed scrutiny over extrajudicial killings by Kenyan security forces.
The issue of excessive force and unlawful killings by Kenyan police has long been a concern for human rights organizations.
