No further postponement of Sarabjit hanging: Pak

The execution of Indian national Sarabjit Singh, sentenced to death for his alleged involvement in bomb attacks in Pakistan, has not been postponed further, a presidential spokesman said today.

The hanging of Sarabjit was deferred for 30 days by President Pervez Musharraf last month so that Pakistan's new government could review his case following an appeal for clemency from the Indian government. Sarabjit was originally set to be executed on April 1.

According to a local TV channel, spokesman Maj Gen (retired) Rashid Qureshi denied reports in the Pakistani media that Sarabjit's execution had been postponed for one more month.

India's External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Friday made a fresh appeal to the Pakistan government to grant clemency to Sarabjit on humanitarian grounds. There has not been any official response from Islamabad to Mukherjee's appeal.

Sarabjit's lawyer Rana Abdul Hamid has said that the condemned man's case can only be considered by Musharraf, as the President alone has the power to pardon him.

Leading rights activist Ansar Burney too has said he will file a fresh appeal with Musharraf to seek clemency for Sarabjit as there were several loopholes in his conviction by a Pakistani court. (PTI)

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