PESHAWAR, Aug 29: A two-member bench of the Peshawar High Court here on Thursday reserved its judgment on a juvenile offender’s appeal, sentenced to death by an anti-terrorism court in Abbottabad.

The bench comprising Justice Tariq Pervaiz and Justice Qaim Jan Khan will decide whether after promulgation of the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance, 2000, an anti-terrorism court had the jurisdiction to conduct trial of a juvenile offender.

The appeal was fixed before the bench on Wednesday, however, the court directed that the convict should be produced on Thursday about ascertaining his age. The counsel of the appellant had contended that under the said ordinance death penalty could not be awarded to a juvenile offender.

The appellant, Atif Zaman, 16, was charged of killing and sexually molesting another boy, Wajahat Ali, at Naryal Area, Abboatabad district on April 16, 2002. His trial was conducted by the anti-terrorism court, Abbottabad, which on July 24 sentenced him to death for killing the boy, and also sentenced him to life imprisonment on for sexually molesting the deceased.

Advocate Qazi Irshad appeared for the appellant and contended that under Section 12 (a) of the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance, 2000, death penalty could not be slapped on a minor boy. He added that the trial court erred in awarding capital punishment to him.

Justice Pervaiz asked him to assist the court on the question whether in the presence of the said ordinance the trial of a juvenile could be conducted by another court. The counsel stated that he had filed an application in that regard before the trial court, stating that the court had no jurisdiction to conduct trial of a juvenile, but the said application was overlooked and not decided by the court.

He referred to section 4(3) of the Ordinance, arguing that under that section the juvenile courts had the  exclusive jurisdiction to try cases in which a child was accused of commission of an offence. He added that a few months back the chief justice of the high court had delegated powers of juvenile courts on district and sessions judge of all the districts of the province following which they had the exclusive jurisdiction to hear cases of a child offender.