ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court may take up from Dec 15 (Friday) a set of Intra-Court Appeals (ICAs) moved to challenge the Oct 23 unanimous verdict of the Supreme Court declaring the trial of 103 civilians by the military court for their alleged involvement in the May 9 violence as against the Constitution.

A seven-judge bench is likely to hear the petitions moved by the federal government, defence ministry, the Punjab, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan governments requesting the suspension of the operation of Oct 23 short order during the ICAs pendency.

The appeals claim that through the order the Supreme Court had traversed beyond its jurisdiction and excluded from the ambit of the Pakistan Army Act (PAA), 1952, civilians who may be guilty of committing offences specified in Section 2 (d)(1) of the PAA thereby considerably undermining the ability of armed forces to discharge their constitutional duty to defend Pakistan against external aggression or threat of war and thus violating the very letter and purport of Article 245 (1) of the Constitution.

Headed by Justice Ijazul Ahsan, a five-judge Supreme Court bench on Oct 23 had declared that the cases of the accused allegedly involved in May 9 riots will not be tried, from now on, in military courts but criminal courts of competent jurisdiction established under the ordinary or special law of the land.

The ICAs questioned whether seducing or attempting to seduce any person who was subject to PAA from his duty or allegiance to government, or commission of any offence under the Official Secrets Act, 1923, in relation to any work of defence, arsenal, military establishment or station or military affairs of Pakistan, by civilians were not acts having direct nexus with armed forces. Thus the civilians accused of these offences are legally triable under PAA as held, in, and on the touchstone of the principle laid down in retired Brig F.B. Ali’s case.

Contempt of court

In addition to ICAs, a contempt of court petition has also been filed before the Supreme Court against Defence Secretary retired Lt Gen Hamooduz Zaman Khan for allegedly disregarding the Oct 23 verdict of the top court declaring the trial of 103 civilians by military court for their alleged involvement in the May 9 violence, as against the Constitution.

The petition was filed by senior counsel Faisal Siddiqui on behalf of Fahim Zaman Khan, Mahnaz Rahman, Prof Dr A.H. Nayyar and Syed Zulfiqar Hussain Gilani contending the alleged contemnor was a party to the proceedings before the apex court in which trial of civilians by the military courts was challenged, pursuant to which Oct 23 judgment came.

Published in Dawn, December 9th, 2023