Centre, provinces mulling challenging SC verdict on military courts

ISLAMABAD: The federal and provincial governments are mulling to formally challenge the Supreme Court (SC) judgment of declaring military trials of civilians unconstitutional.

The federal and provincial governments have engaged top lawyers to challenge the verdict, issued by a larger bench of the apex court last month. The lone elected house of the country, Senate, Monday adopted a strongly worded resolution, opposing the court verdict. A five-judge SC bench had unanimously declared the trial of civilians in military courts as null and void in October and ordered that 103 accused in cases relating to the May 9-10, 2023 violence be tried under the ordinary criminal laws.

Sources told The News Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan would represent the federal government, the defence ministry had approached senior lawyer Khawaja Haris, and the interior ministry hired Ahmer Bilal Sufi. The Balochistan and Sindh governments intend to submit pleas against the verdict through Sikandar Bashir Mohmand and Jahanzaib Awan, respectively.

Under the law, intra-court appeals have to be filed in 30 days, and the same are to be fixed for hearing in 14 days of application.

The SC, through a 4-1 majority, had declared certain clauses of the Army Act as ultra vires the Constitution and of no legal effect. One judge of the bench, reserved his verdict on one para, though siding with the bench on the remaining paras.

The bench, led by Justice Ijazul Ahsan and including Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Mazahir Naqvi, and Justice Ayesha Malik, heard the petitions that had challenged the trial of civilians, allegedly involved in the May-9 violence in the military courts.

The petitions, questioning the legitimacy of trying civilians in military courts, were filed by PTI Chairman Imran Khan, retired chief justice of Pakistan Jawwad S Khawaja, Supreme Court Bar Association, Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan, Karamat Ali, Zaman Khan Vardag, Junaid Razzaq, Hafeezullah Niazi, Lt-Col (retd) Inamur-Rahim and Naeemuddin Qureshi.