PESHAWAR, Oct 8: A two-member bench of the Peshawar High Court here on Tuesday reserved its judgment on the appeals of six convicts who had been sentenced to death by an anti-terrorism court in the Brinks security agency dacoity case.

An appellants’ counsel had raised objection that the ATC had no jurisdiction to conduct the trial of the convicts.

The robbery took place on Sept 21, 2000, in Nowshera, during which the accused killed Tanoosh Khan and Zulfiqar, driver and guard of the Brinks security agency, and injured another guard Samar Gul.

The victims were taking cash from a bank in Nowshera.

The appellants — Mir Zaman, Ahsanullah, Jan Mohammad, Nadeem, Jamshed and Sameen — were convicted by the trial court on June 24.

Another counsel of the accused, Zaffar Abbas Zaidi, contended before the bench, comprising Justice Tariq Pervaiz and Justice Qaim Jan Khan, that the case was pending before the Nowshera district and sessions judge, and later it was transferred to the ATC without any declaration by the government.

Mr Zaidi argued that under the Anti terrorism Act of 1997, it was mandatory that a declaration should be issued by the government for transferring the case to the ATC.

Initially the trial was conducted in Nowshera by the district and sessions judge in his capacity as a special judge under the Suppression of Terrorists Activities Act (STAA) 1975, which stood repealed with the enactment of the ATA 1997, he told the bench.

He contended that under Section 39B(2b) of the ATA, the cases pending under the STAA 1975, before the enactment of the ATA had to be proceeded under the same law.