February 3, 2026
By Rehan Piracha
LAHORE
The Federal Constitutional Court has disposed of suo motu proceedings into the murder of renowned Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif in Kenya, leaving his family deeply distressed and demanding justice through alternative legal channels.
Javeria Arshad, one of Arshad Sharif’s widows, expressed profound disappointment following the court’s decision. “The case went from the Supreme Court to the Federal Constitutional Court and they dismissed the case. I am deeply saddened by this,” she told Voicepk. “A judicial commission should be formed to investigate the murder of Arshad Sharif and an FIR should be registered on the complaint of our family,” she added.
No support provided to family to pursue case in Kenya
Reflecting on the protracted legal battle, Javeria revealed her frustration with the judicial process. “The case was pending in the Supreme Court of Pakistan. The judges kept avoiding listening to us and despite asking permission for four years, I was never allowed to speak and the government’s lawyers felt like they were Kenyan lawyers,” she said. “They did not care about the murder of their citizen Arshad Sharif. They all preferred diplomatic relations with Kenya.”
Javeria Arshad further noted the lack of support from Pakistani authorities when she approached the judicial authorities in Kenya. “In Kenya, the government did not provide any help to me personally, and now the case has reached the Supreme Court in Kenya.”
Arshad Sharif, a prominent Pakistani journalist, was fatally shot on October 23, 2022, at approximately 9:30 p.m. by personnel of Kenya’s General Services Unit (GSU) on Losinyani Road in the Kamukuru area of Kajiado County. The journalist had left Pakistan on August 10, 2020, traveling to Dubai before relocating to Kenya after UAE authorities asked him to leave the country.
The judgment notes that “Mr. Sharif not being present in Pakistan at the relevant time, multiple First Information Reports (FIR) had been registered against him.” Additionally, on August 5, 2022, the Counter Terrorism Department of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had issued a threat alert indicating that Mr. Sharif’s life was at risk.
According to the Kenyan police version presented in the judgment, “the Toyota Land Cruiser bearing registration number KDG200M, in which Mr. Sharif was travelling, failed to stop at a designated roadblock despite repeated warnings, whereupon GSU officers opened fire.”
Following the tragic incident, then Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial took suo motu notice under Article 184(3) of the Constitution. The Supreme Court directed the formation of a Special Joint Investigation Team (SJIT) comprising five members from various Pakistani law enforcement agencies. An FIR (No. 987/22) was registered on December 6, 2022, under sections 302/34 of the Pakistan Penal Code at Police Station Ramna, Islamabad.
FCC lists govt’s investigative efforts
The Federal Constitutional Court’s judgment detailed extensive measures taken by Pakistan’s government. The SJIT “conducted interviews with several individuals who had close associations with Mr. Sharif and also contacted relevant authorities in the UAE to determine the reasons for his departure from that country.”
The investigation team also “held discussions with the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP)” in Kenya and “engaged legal counsel to assess the available legal options arising from the incident.”
At the diplomatic level, the judgment noted that “the Prime Minister of Pakistan has communicated with the President of Kenya on February 20, 2023 to ensure that the investigation is carried out smoothly in a transparent manner and requested cooperation of the Kenyan authorities.”
Furthermore, “black warrants have been issued against the perpetrators to secure their arrest, so that they may be tried in Pakistan in accordance with law.”
Mutual legal assistance framework
A significant development highlighted in the judgment was the signing of a Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) agreement between Pakistan and Kenya. The court noted that “an MLA agreement has been signed between the two States to facilitate cooperation between law enforcement authorities, including the collection of evidence, visits to the place of occurrence, and the interrogation of individuals connected with the incident.”
The judgment explained that a formal request to visit Kenya was made to concerned Kenyan authorities, with Pakistan awaiting their response.
FCC’s rational for disposing case
The Federal Constitutional Court, comprising Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Rozi Khan Barrech, provided detailed reasoning for disposing of the suo motu proceedings. The court emphasized that “no party appearing in this case has raised any objection to the findings of the fact-finding teams or the SJIT. No objection has been taken to the mode or manner in which the inquiry has been conducted by the law enforcement agencies in Pakistan.”
Citing established jurisprudence, the court referenced the Supreme Court’s decision in Ajmeel Khan v. Abdur Rahim, which held that “functions of the judiciary and the police are complementary not overlapping” and that “the conduct and manner of investigation normally is not to be scrutinized under Constitutional jurisdiction.”
The judgment stated: “If we were to oversee and monitor the investigation by keeping this suo motu pending, we would, in effect, be supervising every aspect of the investigation. Such an approach would be contrary to the authority of the Supreme Court.”
The court also addressed the submission that the Federal Government should pursue the matter on international forums, noting that “matters of foreign relations are best handled by the MoFA and the Federal Government, who are better equipped to determine what serves the purposes of Article 40 and what is appropriate in the international context.”
Ongoing proceedings in Kenya
The judgment acknowledged that “the family of Mr. Sharif has also sought a remedy in Kenya, where they filed a writ petition before the Kenyan High Court regarding the murder of Mr. Sharif. The matter is currently under appeal before the Supreme Court of Kenya.”
Family’s broader demands
Javeria Arshad’s statement extended beyond the immediate case, demanding accountability for those who targeted her late husband. “All those people on whose behalf false FIRs were filed against Arshad Sharif should be punished. Those on whose orders Arshad Sharif’s show Power Play was shut down and false cases were registered against Arshad Sharif across the country should also be brought to justice,” she stated.
She called for systemic reforms to protect journalists: “Journalists should be protected and undeclared censorship should be ended. The government should stop harassing journalists by resorting to PECA laws. Harassment against me should be stopped and all our families should be protected.”
In its conclusion, the Federal Constitutional Court disposed of the suo motu action and all pending applications. The judgment stated: “We acknowledge and share the grief felt by our Nation and the journalist community over the death of our citizen.”
Importantly, the court noted: “Needless to observe that in case the legal heirs of Mr. Sharif have any specific grievance in the matter they can approach the court(s) of competent jurisdiction.”
With the Federal Constitutional Court’s decision to dispose of the proceedings, the Sharif family’s quest for justice continues through parallel proceedings in Kenya’s Supreme Court, while the MLA framework between Pakistan and Kenya remains the primary mechanism for coordinating the ongoing investigation into the journalist’s death.