PTI challenges military trials of May 9 vandals in SC

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Monday moved the Supreme Court against the trial of the civilians accused of May 9 arson under military courts and asked the top court to determine whether it was a “clear violation of due process” and Pakistan’s commitment to international laws.

The petition has been moved by PTI’s Additional Secretary General Omar Ayub Khan on behalf of the party and seeks the top court’s intervention under Article 184(3).

The party also challenged the deployment of the armed forces under Article 245 alleging that it was being used to “political[ly] victimise” the Imran Khan-led party.

The petition has put 22 questions before the court asking for its input on the scope of the law, whether the requisition violates Article 17 or not and if the deployment is a “threat to the system of parliamentary democracy”.

The petition also asks the court to examine if the requisition of the armed forces is “malafide and in excess of jurisdiction” as the federal government had claimed that they could not be deployed due to the security situation during elections.

“Whether the trial of civilians through military courts is a clear violation of the Constitutional guarantees of due process and fair trial and violation of Pakistan’s existing obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) as well as the jurisprudence developed by this Honourable Court?” asked the plea.

The petition also questioned the “federal government’s support” of the public gathering held by the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) outside the Supreme Court showed a “discriminatory attitude” towards the use of Article 245 and Section 144.

The petition also questioned whether the labelling of the PTI as a “terrorist organisation” was a tactic not to hold elections and “oust” the Imran Khan-led party from the electoral process.

On May 9, PTI Chairman Imran Khan was arrested from the Islamabad High Court, and following his arrest, protests broke out throughout the country with many military installations attacked as well — including the corps commander's house in Lahore and the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi.

Following the violent protests, the military was called in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, and Islamabad to maintain the law and order situation.

The Ministry of Interior has approved the Punjab government's request for assistance by sanctioning ten companies of troops, saying: "The army would be working alongside district administration to restore law, order and peace".

As the military installations were also attacked, the government and the military decided that the vandals should be tried under the Pakistan Army Act and the Official Secrets Act.