ISLAMABAD: The Constitutional Bench (CB) of the Supreme Court on Friday asked the PTI leadership to submit additional documents in support of their contentions pleas to form a judicial commission to probe the events of May 9, 2023, and the alleged victimisation of its workers.
Headed by Justice Aminuddin Khan, the five-judge bench had taken up two separate petitions filed by PTI founder Imran Khan through Hamid Khan.
The other petition, moved by PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja, was for a judicial commission to assess “interference in the functioning of State authorities”.
At the outset of the hearing on Friday, Mr Hamid argued that his party had sought a judicial commission consisting of the chief justice and two senior judges to ascertain events of May 9.
Party asked to submit documents; judge questions absence of death certificates of dozens said to be ‘killed during violence’
Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail reminded Mr Khan that his petition cited the alleged killing of dozens of civilians during the May 9 incidents, but not a single death certificate has been attached.
“You should at least show a single death certificate of a citizen or at least a press report about the killing,” Justice Mandokhail observed.
Justice Khan, who was heading the bench, wondered if any FIR was ever filed over these alleged deaths.
The case was postponed when the counsel requested time to submit relevant documents.
In its petition, the PTI founder regretted the arrests and detentions of PTI supporters and workers under the Maintenance of Public Order.
These detentions were made without disclosing legal grounds for them, which was “unconstitutional”.
Mr Khan said the detained PTI leaders and workers should be released immediately as their arrests and detentions were “illegal, malafide without jurisdiction” and “against the Constitution”.
‘Raise voice in parliament’
While hearing the petitions filed by Mr Raja, Justice Mandokhail sought clarity over how the PTI leadership was being targeted, as claimed in his petition.
The counsel contended that the PTI founder had written an open letter to the chief justice of Pakistan highlighting several cases against the party leadership.
He contended that he wanted to assist the court in determining why it was necessary to form the judicial commission on the entire situation and cited the abduction of PTI leader Intezar Panjutha “by security forces”.
At this, Justice Musarrat Hilali asked if Mr Panjutha ever recorded his statement before the police.
The counsel replied that Mr Panjutha was reportedly warned not to meet anyone. “He could neither sleep nor talk with anyone”, Mr Raja said about the PTI leader.
Justice Mandokhail observed that the court can rescue someone but cannot stop such incidents from happening. He also said parliament was the forum where PTI members sit.
“Go to the parliament and raise your voice there,” Justice Mandokhail observed.
The counsel claimed that the parliament “cannot do anything about it”.
Justice Mandokhail replied that the “parliament can do a lot of things” since it was the real forum to raise these issues.
The counsel cited the example of India, where the Supreme Court interfered when the government itself was involved in the Gujarat riots. “When the state is criminal, then the court can use its authority,” the counsel said.
The petition urged the court to look into the “relentless and pervasive” violations of the fundamental rights of citizens by the authorities “in collusion with unknown persons”.
The petitions challenged the “systematic targeting and harassment of political figures, human rights activists, and their supporters by the state through arbitrary arrests, fabricated charges, prolonged detentions and intimidation tactics”.
Published in Dawn, March 1st, 2025
