Lahore: Indian death row prisoner Sarabjit Singh was on Monday allowed by a Pakistani court to meet his lawyer in jail and rejected objections raised by authorities regarding such meetings.
Lahore High Court Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial issued the order after hearing arguments by his lawyer Awais Sheikh and the Assistant Advocate General of Punjab province.
Sheikh argued that authorities at Kot Lakhpat Jail could not stop him from meeting Sarabjit as he was the prisoner's counsel.
Sheikh said he was prevented from visiting his client in jail.
Such actions by the jail authorities and the provincial government violated the fundamental rights of a person, he said.
The Assistant Advocate General argued that since Sarabjit's case had been decided and no proceedings were underway, there was no point in allowing him to meet his counsel.
Sheikh told the judge that he wanted to meet his client as he had to get a fresh mercy petition and a letter signed by Sarabjit.
The court rejected the law officer's arguments and allowed Sheikh to meet his client.
The lawyer told PTI that he intends to submit the fresh mercy petition to President Asif Ali Zardari.
Sarabjit was convicted for alleged involvement in a string of bombings in 1990 that killed 14 people.
His family says he is a farmer and the victim of mistaken identity. Sarabjit's relatives said he strayed into Pakistan in an inebriated state three months after the bombings.
Following the intervention of the Pakistan People's Party-led government at the centre, Sarabjit's execution was put off indefinitely.
He recently submitted a fresh mercy petition to Zardari.
PTI
First Published: Monday, October 08, 2012, 18:15