The Supreme Court has fixed a set of appeals against civilians’ trial in military courts for hearing, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Friday.
A six-judge bench headed by Justice Sardar Tariq Masood will hear the appeals on Monday (January 29).
Last year on October 23, the court had declared the trial of civilians in the military courts as unconstitutional and held that 103 persons and others who may be placed in relation to the events arising from May 9th and 10th May could be tried by Criminal Courts established under the ordinary or special law of the land.
The 25-page detailed judgment, written by Justice Muneeb Akhtar, has the majority decision of four judges.
The bench was headed by former Justice Ijazul Ahsan and comprised of Justice Muneeb Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi, former Justice Mazahir Ali Akbar Naqvi and Justice Ayesha A Malik.
The detailed judgment also includes an additional 48-page note by Justice Ayesha Malik. Justice Ayesha held that the offences under the Official Secrets Act were triable before the ordinary criminal courts, which guarantees fair trial, due process and independence as mandated by the Constitution. However, none of the 103 persons detained were reported for offences under the said Act. “Yet applications were made under Section 549 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 (Cr.P.C.), for their delivery to military authorities.
On Dec 28, 2023, in a letter to the three-member Judges Committee of the Supreme Court, former Chief Justice Jawad S Khawaja objected to the bench headed by Justice Sardar Tariq Masood for hearing intra-court appeals against the decision to stop the trial of civilians in military courts.
He requested that a seven-member larger bench should be formed according to seniority, under the chairmanship of Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, to hear the appeals.
He also claimed that he got the right to object to the bench as he was the petitioner in the main case, and that Justice Sardar Tariq Masood could not hear the case due to his earlier opinion on the matter.
Reporter Amanat Gishkori