ISLAMABAD: Senior attorney Aitzaz Ahsan has petitioned the Supreme Court to reopen the case pertaining to an internal appeal that the federal government filed challenging the ruling of the highest court that prevented the prosecution of suspected May 9 rioters in military courts.
The application, filed by well-known attorney and PTI leader Sardar Latif Khosa, claims that the prosecution of civilians by military officials is a serious matter that has to be resolved quickly. It begs the court to set a hearing date for the intra-court appeal for the judicial week that starts on March 18.
The military commander’s decision to pursue the rioters, who were allegedly primarily PTI activists, who had damaged army and state facilities and memorials after former prime minister Imran Khan was arrested on May 9, 2023, was supported by the federal government led by the PML-N last year.
Aitzaz Ahsan was among the petitioners who challenged the ruling in the Supreme Court, where on October 23, 2023, a five-member bigger court declared these trials to be unlawful. The bench instructed the prosecution to try these accused parties in regular courts.
The bench swiftly determined that Section 2(1)(d) of the Army legislation, 1952, which provided further details on the individuals covered by the legislation, violated the Constitution and was “of no legal effect.”
In addition, the act’s Section 59(4) (civil offenses) was ruled invalid by the court. On the other hand, bench member Justice Yahya Afridi had disagreed on the removal of these clauses.
After the federal government appealed the decision inside the court, the October 23 verdict was suspended on December 13, 2023, when a six-member Supreme Court panel accepted the petition for hearing.
The bench hasn’t heard the case yet, though. Nonetheless, due to a protest voiced by one of the petitioners, Senior Puisne Judge Sardar Tariq Masood of the Supreme Court, one of the six members of the bench, has withdrawn from the case. Masood’s retirement is scheduled for March 8th, which is today.
