ISLAMABAD, Sept 9: The Supreme Court has directed the district and sessions judge of Mianwali to consider, in accordance with law, the compromise deal reached between the two parties for granting a pardon to four convicts.

It had been brought to the notice of the Chief Justice that the compromise deal — details of which had been submitted by the parties to the sessions judge — was not being entertained on the plea that the matter was pending in the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court had taken suo motu notice after it had been reported in the press that a compromise deal had been finalized on the offer of the accused party that eight girls and Rs8 million would be given to the aggrieved party for the pardon of the four convicts under the Qisas and Diyat law.

Taking notice of the deal, the CJ had said: “The compromise deal as reported in the press, prima facie, appears to have been reached in violation of the law of the land and against the norms of the civilized world”.

The CJ had then directed the registrar to register it as a suo motu case. Accordingly, the sessions judge of Mianwali was directed to submit a report in the matter. In his report, the sessions judge stated that he had not received any compromise deal.

The sessions judge stated that he had summoned the two parties who informed him that a compromise deal with the help of the influential people of the area was in the offing. He further stated that the condition of giving girls for the pardon was dropped.

Later, the two parties approached the Supreme Court and informed it that the sessions judge was not accepting their deal on the grounds that the matter was pending in the Supreme Court.

The Chief Justice has clarified that the sessions judge is free to proceed in accordance with law.

Under the law, if the two parties strike a deal when the appeals have been dismissed, a compromise deal is submitted to the trial court, which after determining that the deal is genuine, orders the release of the convicts.

Sardar Khan, Mohammad Akram Khan, Mohammad Ashraf Khan and Asmatullah Khan, who were awarded death sentence in a double murder case by the sessions judge of Mianwali, would now come out of jail.