ISLAMABAD – Supreme Court of Pakistan further grilled military court jurisdiction in terrorism cases including Army Public School APS attack as the trials for Civilians comes under scrutiny in apex court.
During a hearing on appeals against trial of civilians in military courts, the Supreme Court’s constitutional bench, led by Justice Aminuddin, raised critical questions about why certain high-profile cases, including APS attack, were not heard in military courts despite Army Act being in place.
The bench members questioned why an amendment to the constitution was needed for terrorist trials in military courts, especially when national alliance was there after worst attack. The bench noted that if the crime was related to the armed forces, the trial should have occurred in a military court under the Army Act, but no such trial took place at the time.
During the arguments, Khawaja Haris argued that nature of the crime decided where the trial would be held. He explained that crimes involving civilians with ties to the armed forces would go to military courts. However, Justice Jamal Mandokhail raised concerns over the intention behind such crimes, suggesting that this factor should also be considered.
The bench further inquired about cases like the attacks on GHQ and the Karachi Airbase, questioning why these cases were not transferred to military courts. Khawaja Haris responded by referencing the 21st Constitutional Amendment, which outlined the types of crimes that could be tried in military courts.
The bench also questioned if crimes committed in the name of terrorist groups or religion would fall under military jurisdiction, with the Ministry of Defence’s lawyer affirming that such cases could be handled by military courts even without constitutional amendments.
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