Arshad Sharif’s right to life was violated when he was shot to death by police, according to Judge Stella Mutuku, who also awarded $78,000 in damages.
Kenyan High Court found on Monday that Kenyan police’s 2022 assassination of Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif was “unlawful” and “unconstitutional.”
Sharif’s rights were violated by the Kenyan police’s activities, according to Justice S. N. Mutuku.
When he was shot and killed by Kenyan police in 2022 at a checkpoint outside Nairobi, Pakistani journalist Sharif, 46, was well-known in his home country.
Outrage over his passing led to calls for an impartial inquiry into the incident’s circumstances.
Judge Mutuku said, “the Kenyan police officers’ unlawful shooting of Arshad Sharif violated his right to life as guaranteed under Article 26 of the Constitution.”
As a result, she ordered the state to compensate Sharif’s family with 10 million Kenya shillings ($78,000).
After a protracted legal fight, the court rendered its ruling. In their demand for damages, Sharif’s family claimed that the state was to blame for the occurrence and that police action was the reason behind his death.
Javeria Siddique, the widow of Sharif, expressed relief over the decision.
“A certain amount of justice is served to Arshad by this ruling. I am happy that Judge Stella provided justice to my family and me in Pakistan,” said Siddique. She also added that, meanwhile, the Kenyan police had not yet responded to her.
Siddique emphasized her desire for accountability, stating, “I still want all the police officers responsible for the killing to be punished and held accountable.”
As police acknowledged the murder that took place on October 23 of last year, Siddique was represented in court by attorney Dudley Ochiel in Kajiado, a town south of Nairobi.
The shooting, according to the authorities, was a case of “mistaken identity.”
The judge ruled that the police violated the deceased’s rights by shooting him under the conditions outlined in this case and by claiming that it was a case of “mistaken identity.”
The Sharif homicide case is currently pending before Pakistan’s highest court.
Commenting on the Kenyan court’s decision, Pakistani Senator Allama Raja Nasir hailed it as a “significant affirmation of the rule of law and justice, and a triumph for truth and justice.”
“In our own country (Pakistan), our courts must also uphold their constitutional duty with utmost integrity regarding the killing of innocent individuals. The motives and perpetrators of this grave murder must be brought to light,” Nasir stated briefly in Urdu on the social media platform X.
