The Supreme Court will resume hearing a set of pleas challenging the trial of civilians in the country’s military courts today Tuesday. A six-judge larger bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial and consisting Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi and Justice Ayesha A. Malik, will resume hearing the pleas. A day earlier, the federal government had taken a stand before the apex court and stated that the trial of those accused of violence against the armed forces under the Pakistan Army Act (PAA) 1952 was an “apt and proportionate response” under the constitutional framework and statutory regime. “Violence against the military, defence installations and establishments was a direct attack against the national security of Pakistan and therefore prejudicial to security, interests and defence of Pakistan,” the government said in a concise statement submitted to the apex court.

 At the previous hearing, Attorney-General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman Awan had told the court that the cases against the detained civilians were still at the investigation stage, and also assured the bench that no accused would be charged with the commission of any offence that attracts either capital punishment or a lengthy sentence. The petitions were filed by former CJP Jawwad S. Khawaja, Aitzaz Ahsan, Karamat Ali, and PTI Chairman Imran Khan. Khawaja, who filed the petition through his counsel Advocate Khawaja Ahmad, requested the top court to declare the trial of civilians by military courts unconstitutional. The former CJP pleaded that Section 2(1)(d)(i) and (ii) of the Pakistan Army Act were inconsistent with the fundamental rights conferred by the Constitution and therefore void, and should be struck down. As an interim measure, all proceedings against civilians based on the sections should be suspended or, in the alternative, any military court should be restrained from passing a final order in any case against civilians based on the sections, the petition stated.

 
Credit : Independent News Pakistan-INP