Appeals from Pak to suspend Guru's execution

Islamabad, Oct 7: Ruling Pakistan Muslim League's Secretary General Mushahid Hussain has appealed to the Indian Government to suspend the execution of Muhammad Afzal Guru the way Islamabad had in the case of Sarabjit Singh, a media report said.

The Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) has quoted Mr Mushahid, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, as appealing to President A P J Abdul Kalam to suspend the death penalty of Afzal Guru the way Pakistan had accepted India's request to suspend the death penalty of Sarabjit Singh who was convicted to death for involvement in a series of bomb blasts in Pakistan's Punjab province.

Mr Mushahid said the Indian leaders should take the decision to suspend the execution as the Supreme Court of India had also declared that the trial was not fair.

The Secretary General said there are many controversial news about the involvement of Muhammad Afzal Guru in the attack on Indian Parliament, and therefore, the Indian government should immediately suspend the execution.

Pakistani Foreign Ministry on Thursday had refused to comment on Guru's death sentence, saying it was watching the situation.

''We are watching the situation closely and understand that there is a clemency appeal by the family of Mohammad Afzal,'' spokeswoman Tasneem Aslam had said in Islamabad.

However, Prime Minister of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan had made a rare appeal to the Kashmir government to help save the life of Afzal Guru, sentenced to death on charges which, he said were ''disputed''.

The Pakistani authorities and human rights groups in both the countries have urged New Delhi to spare the life of ''activist'' Guru, who denies the charge about the 2001 attack.

UNI