Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: The caretaker federal and provincial governments of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan on Friday filed intra-court appeals against the Supreme Court’s October 23 judgment, declaring the military trial of civilians arrested in connection with the May 9 mayhem null and void.
Besides the Centre and provincial governments, the Ministry of Defence also appealed to the top court to revoke its October 23 ruling and restore the sections of the Official Secrets Act that were declared illegal by the five-member bench.
A day earlier, the Sindh caretaker government and Shuhada Forum, Balochistan, separately requested the apex court to set aside its judgment declaring unconstitutional the trials of civilians in military courts.
Last month, the five-member bench of the top court declared civilians’ trials in military courts null and void as it admitted the petitions challenging the trial of civilians involved in the May 9 riots triggered by the arrest of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan in a corruption case. The SC’s larger bench headed by Justice Ijazul Ahsan and comprising Justices Munib Akhtar, Yayha Afridi, Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi and Ayesha A. Malik had announced the verdict.
In its plea, the federal government urged the top court to declare its October 23 judgment null and void. The Centre also sought a stay against the verdict of the top court till the decision on its appeal.
Raising objections over the judgment, the federal government argued that the five-member bench was not constituted as per the SC Practice and Procedure Act 2023, hence its ruling was “invalid”.
In similar petitions, the caretaker governments of Balochistan and KP also urged the top court to declare the five-member bench’s judgment on the trials of civilians in military courts as null and void.
In its intra-court appeal, the Ministry of Defence urged the apex court to revoke the October 23 decision and restore the sections of the Official Secrets Act that were declared illegal by the bench. It also urges the Supreme Court to restore Section 59(4) of the Army Act.
