ISLAMABAD – Supreme Court Justice Jamal Mandokhail remarked that the accused in the May 9 case are not affiliated with the armed forces.
Justice Mandokhail gave these remarks during hearing of a case related to the trial of the civilians in the military court. A SC seven-member constitutional bench headed by Justice Aminuddin Khan is hearing the military courts case.
Defense Ministry lawyer Khawaja Haris began his arguments, stating that the court’s decision is based on Articles 8(5) and 8(3), which are entirely different and cannot be combined.
Justice Jamal Mandokhail noted, “We understood your point yesterday; please proceed with the rest of your arguments,”.
Khawaja Haris referred to the ruling that declared civilians’ trials in military courts null and void. He argued that the FB Ali case had established that civilians could be tried in military courts. He added that the majority decision misinterpreted Articles 8(3) and 8(5).
Justice Jamal Mandokhail stated, “We will see whether we agree with you on this or not,”.
Haris argued that the decision was based on a misinterpretation, claiming that the FB Ali case was of a different nature as the trial occurred post-retirement when the individual was a civilian.
Haris further explained that the ruling stated the individual in the FB Ali case was not retired at the time of the offense, which made it distinct. Justice Mandokhail remarked, “In the current case, the accused from May 9 are not part of the armed forces. Nowadays, there is a term ‘ex-servicemen’; they are not even ex-servicemen. Let us use the term ‘civilian’ instead,”.
Justice Mandokhail highlighted the key question: “To what extent can civilians be tried in military courts?” Justice Musarrat Hilali remarked, “Trials of civilians in military courts were intended for heinous criminals like those involved in the APS tragedy. Can all civilians be treated the same as in the APS incident? The Constitution of Pakistan has not been suspended,”.
The Defense Ministry’s lawyer responded, “Fundamental rights remain intact, and judicial precedents exist on this matter,”.
Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar asked, “What is the international practice regarding the military courts? Provide us with examples,” The Defense Ministry lawyer stated that he would present international examples.
Justice Mandokhail remarked, “Our soldiers are martyred daily, and we deeply feel for the martyrs. The question is, why are cases related to these martyrs not tried in military courts? Can a person merely with an ideology face trial in military courts? The question is, which cases fall under Article 8(3) and can be tried in military courts?”.
