The Lahore High Court Chief Justice on Monday allowed the consultant of law ministry Arif Chaudhry to examine the record of murder case against former Prime Minister Zulifkar Ali Bhutto. An application was submitted to the LHC registrar Abdus Sattar Asghar, stating that a presidential reference has been filed in the Supreme Court to revisit the verdict in murder case against Bhutto.
It was further stated in the application that government needed to inspect the record so that it could assist apex court in a better way. Registrar sought the approval from LHC CJ Justice Ijaz Ahmad Chaudhry who allowed the application. A five-member bench of LHC headed by Maulvi Mushtaq Ahmad held Bhutto trial for five months and awarded death sentence to him on March 18, 1978.
Bhutto's family filed an appeal in the Supreme Court. A seven-member bench upheld his death sentence in its February 6, 1979, verdict by 4 to 3 majority. His review petition was also dismissed on March 24, 1979, and Bhutto was hanged at Central jail, Rawalpindi, on April 04, 1979.