Pakistani politician’s murder: Killer’s appeal denied

Pakistan’s Supreme Court has upheld the death sentence of a police bodyguard who killed a senior politician over his support for blasphemy law reform. Mumtaz Qadri was guarding Punjab governor Salman Taseer in an Islamabad market in 2011 when he shot Taseer. Qadri claimed it was his religious duty to kill the governor over his […]

Pakistan’s Supreme Court has upheld the death sentence of a police bodyguard who killed a senior politician over his support for blasphemy law reform.
Mumtaz Qadri was guarding Punjab governor Salman Taseer in an Islamabad market in 2011 when he shot Taseer.
Qadri claimed it was his religious duty to kill the governor over his support for liberal reforms to blasphemy law, but was sentenced to death.
The failure of his appeal is a setback for the country’s religious extremists.
Qadri can still file for a review of the court ruling or appeal for a presidential pardon, but his lawyer told the BBC it was not yet decided.
Taseer was an outspoken critic of the harsh blasphemy law and had sought a presidential pardon for Asia Bibi, a Christian woman sentenced to death for insulting the Prophet Muhammad.
Her appeal is still pending with the Supreme Court.