Aafia Siddiqui

NEW YORK: The court-appointed attorney for Aafia Siddiqui Friday urged a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals to reverse her September 2010 conviction and sentence to 86 years in prison on the ground that she was mentally ill and that some of the evidences related to the case were questionable.Lawyers for the reversal of the heavy sentence given to Dr. Siddiqui, the Pakistani neuroscientist, and U.S. government side opposing it presented their respective arguments before the justices, citing a number of points of law. The panel will pronounce its verdict on the case in due course. Legal sources said it could be nearly six months.


Outside the court a number of civil rights activists staged a rally demanding Dr. Siddiuqi’s immediate release and repatriation to Pakistan.
Dr. Siddiqui was sentenced after a jury trial in the Federal District Court in New York City nearly two years ago for allegedly shooting at American intelligence officials in Afghanistan in 2008, a charge she consistently denied. She is now spending time in prison in Carswell, Texas.
On Friday, Dawn Cardi, the attorney, made a strong case before the justices that Ms. Siddiqui should have been barred from giving evidence before the trial court because of her mental illness, which had been confirmed by doctors.
Cardi also questioned the evidence collected from Dr. Siddiqui by two FBI agents at the U.S. base in Baghram while she was recovering from the bullet wounds she sustained at a police facility in Ghazni, Afghanistan, in July 2008.
She said the evidence was prejudicial because she had not been read her rights and therefore should not have been entertained. Moreover, she had not the opportunity to consult any lawyer.
Cardi also said that during the trial, experts had provided concrete evidence that the M-4 rifle which she allegedly picked up had not been not fired and that no spent bullets or casings were found.
She said since Dr. Siddiqui was not being tried for terrorism, the material containing diagrams of New York landmarks allegedly recovered from her should not have been introduced into the proceedings.
But the government side maintained that Dr. Siddiqui was competent to stand trial. Prosecution lawyers also said that Dr. Siddiqui was not “interrorgated” but was “interviewed”. The government lawyers also justified the introduction of material recovered from her, saying she harboured hatred against the United States and shouted anti-American slogans at the time of her arrest.
As regard the shooting incident, government lawyers that it was a pre-meditated and calculated move on Dr. Siddiqui’s part. But her defence lawyer against denied any premeditation on her part and that she had not shot at any one.
Pakistan’s Consul-General in New York, Fakir Asif Hussain, was among a large number of people witnessing the proceedings. (APP)