KBA rejects SC judgement allowing civilians’ trial in military courts

The Karachi Bar Association (KBA) on Wednesday rejected the Supreme Court’s judgement allowing civilians involved in the May 9, 2023, riots to be tried in military courts, and urged the parliament to immediately legislate to permanently stop military trials of civilians.

In a resolution the KBA said that this retrogressive judgement restored provisions of the Pakistan Army Act, 1952, which enables the trial of civilians by military courts, and constitutes a serious blow to the basic structure of the constitution.

“This verdict comes at a time when the legal fraternity is already engaged in a continuous and principled struggle against corporate farming, the 26th constitutional amendment, and Peca amendments — all reflecting executive excesses,” reads the resolution.

“This latest judgement marks yet another judicial capitulation before the coercive organs of the state. It sets a dangerous precedent where military jurisdiction can now be extended over civilians, eroding the sanctity of civilian supremacy, and paving the way for further repression of political dissent, free speech and peaceful protest.”

The KBA maintained that this decision is not merely a judicial misstep but a clear abdication of the judiciary’s constitutional role as a check on executive power. “Instead of upholding fundamental rights, the judgement lends judicial endorsement to the militarisation of justice, and compromises the principle of due process, open trial and impartial adjudication — all of which are the cornerstones of any democratic legal order.”

The KBA said that it is deeply alarming that the judiciary, instead of acting as a bulwark against executive overreach, now appears to be subservient to non-civilian institutions, thereby undermining public confidence in judicial independence. It stressed that no constitutional interpretation, no matter how technical, can justify the military trial of a civilian.

The KBA called upon bar councils and associations across the country, including the Pakistan Bar Council, the Supreme Court Bar Association and provincial bar councils, to immediately convene and form a united national front against this unconstitutional encroachment. It also urged the civil society, democratic parties, media and human rights defenders to resist this judicial surrender, and reclaim the constitution from creeping authoritarianism.