Islamabad:
The Apex Court has ordered the Anti -Terrorist Courts (ATC) to conclude the judgments of the protesters of May 9 in four months, an order that may have implications for former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
The Court also ordered the courts of first instance to present reports of biweekly progress in the respective provincial superior courts regarding the judgments.
A regular bank of three members of the Supreme Court led by the president of the Supreme Court of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi heard on Tuesday the request of the Punjab government that sought the cancellation of the bonds given to the people accused of resorting to vandalism after the arrest of Imran Khan on May 9, 2023.
During the procedure, the lawyer who represents the designer Khadeja Shah, one of the defendants of May 9, urged the bank to guarantee the protection of the fundamental rights of his client.
Responding to the request, CJP Afrifi asked the lawyer and his client to have faith in the ATC and let them decide the cases. Going Khadja’s lawyer, Judge Salahuddin Panhwar, a bank member, said it was simply his impression that his client’s right could be raped.
The CJP pointed out that the law clearly establishes that the ATCs would carry out daily trials. Khadja’s lawyer, Sameer Khosa, asked how the trials could be completed in four months given the fact that his client was nominated in several first information reports (FIRS).
PTI’s Foundhry defender, who was present in the courtroom, agreed with the statement of Khadja’s lawyer. “Thirty -five cases are registered against us. How could the ATC decide so many cases in just four months?” asked.
The CJ asked Chaudhry about who he was representing. The lawyer replied that he was representing a coacked Fawad Chaudhry, a former PTI leader and federal minister. After this, Judge Yahya said that the bank would not listen to it, since the case of his client did not appear at the hearing.
Faisal declared that, although his client was not a part in instantaneous cases, the observations and addresses of SC had it. “My client faces 35 FIR through Punjab for a single fact. This is a violation of the established principles.”
He said that the ATCs are carrying out May 9 trials accused in the style of military courts.
“Our fundamental rights of the fair trial have been denied by the courts of first instance. The criteria of the Prosecutor’s Office to involve people in the cases of May 9 is simple: those who left the PTI have been out of the hook while those who do not face multiple judgments.
He asked him to list his case for the audience. The CJP observed that the other cases related to May 9 will be listed for an audience on Monday and Tuesday.
Judge Afridi said he was the president of the Superior Court of Peshawar when Mashaal Khan was lynching by a crowd at the University of Mardan. “An ATC concluded the trial of Mashaal Khan in three months. Please trust ATC. They can perform,” added the CJ.
Talking to the Express PAkGazette, Faisal Chaudhry said he was quite surprised by the absence of PTI’s legal team, since the SC directive will also affect the founder of PTI Imran Khan, who is co -awarded in many cases of May 9, including the GHQ attack case.
“The ATCs are celebrating joint trials of the defendant of May 9. Therefore, the instructions for one of the defendants apply to all the coacked,” he added.
Faisal said the intention of the SC can be in good faith. However, he feared, the ATCS will misunderstand the order of the Apex court and grant sentences to the defendant without following the principles of just trial and ignore the evidence.
Punjab Government Report
The Punjab government filed a report to the Supreme Court on the violent incidents of May 9, stating that the disturbances caused a loss of RS197 million in Punjab, and 24,595 accused in the cases of May 9 are still released.
According to the report, the acts of vandalism and property damage occurred in 38 cities in Punjab on May 9. In Lahore alone, the property of value of RS110 million was damaged. Similarly, damage to Rawalpindi amounted to RS26 million and in Mianwali to RS50 million.
The Punjab government lawyer declared in the report that on May 9 it was not simply a protest or a demonstration, but an attack against an institution.
According to the report, 319 cases were registered in 38 Punjab districts in relation to the incidents of May 9. The total number of defendants in these cases is 35,962, of which 11,367 have been arrested.
The report also establishes that violent protests on May 9 caused the country a total loss of RS 197,348 million, and 152 police and personnel were injured due to violence.
