Islamabad [Pakistan], December 11 : The Pakistan People's Party (PPP) has approached the Supreme Court (SC) requesting a live telecast of the hearing on a presidential reference challenging the death sentence of former Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, according to ARY News.
A nine-member, larger bench of the Supreme Court is set to address the long-pending presidential reference on December 12, aiming to reassess the 'controversial' death penalty imposed on Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
The plea was submitted by PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, emphasising that the legacy of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto endures despite the death sentence handed down in 1979. Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has urged the apex court to allow live telecast of the hearing, as reported by ARY News.
On April 2, 2011, then-President Asif Ali Zardari presented a presidential reference to the apex court, seeking its opinion on revisiting the trial of PPP founder Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto received the death penalty during the rule of former military leader General (retired) Ziaul Haq.
The first elected prime minister of Pakistan was accused of the murder of political rival Nawab Mohammed Ahmed Qasuri, leading to a trial and subsequent hanging on April 4, 1979, amid global appeals for clemency, ARY News reported.
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