The Supreme Court’s constitutional bench has granted conditional permission to military courts to announce verdicts in cases involving 85 suspects allegedly involved in the May 9, 2023, riots.
In its order on the hearing of the appeals against civilians’ military trial, the constitutional bench said judgements of military courts would be conditional to the top court verdict on the cases pending before it.
“The suspects eligible for clemency should be granted it and released, while those who cannot be released should be transferred to prisons after being sentenced,” the constitutional bench said.
The bench, led by Justice Aminuddin Khan, heard intra-court appeals challenging military court decisions. The bench also included Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan, Justice Musarrat Hilali and Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan.
The top court, in its unanimous verdict by a five-member bench, on October 23 last year declared civilians’ trials in military courts null and void after it admitted the petitions challenging the trial of civilians involved in the May 9 riots.
However, on December 13, 2023, a six-member bench of the apex court — with Justice Hilali differing with the majority — suspended its October 23 order on petitions challenging the earlier verdict.
