Petition in PHC maintains that KP legislators named as defendants cannot judge
The management of Radio Pakistan has challenged in the Peshawar High Court the provincial government’s notification to form a commission of inquiry into the May 9 and 10 incidents, arguing that it illegally interferes with an ongoing criminal trial.
In a court petition filed through lawyer Shabbir Hussain Gigyani, Radio Pakistan maintained that its building in Peshawar was attacked during the violent events of May 9, 2023, causing extensive damage to public and private property. Cases were later registered under anti-terrorism provisions and several members of the provincial assembly were named as accused.
The inquiry commission was constituted after the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly passed a motion in December 2025 to form a special committee under Rule 237 to investigate the vandalism at Radio Pakistan Peshawar during the May 9-10, 2023 riots.
Read: ATC seeks case ownership in May 9 attack
Headed by provincial Justice Minister Aftab Alam, the committee was tasked with examining the causes of the incident, including any alleged conspiracy, and reviewing the role of law enforcement agencies before submitting recommendations to the provincial assembly and cabinet.
The petition challenged a notification issued by the Speaker of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly regarding the constitution of a commission of inquiry including members of the assembly. He argued that lawmakers already named as defendants in the case could not judge a matter in which they were defendants.
According to the petition, the trial was initiated before an Anti-Terrorism Court after the prosecution filed the challan. However, while the case was pending, the Speaker issued the notice to investigate the attack on Radio Pakistan, which the petitioner claimed had no legal basis.
The petition maintained that while the Speaker can constitute committees for legislative or public welfare matters, he had no authority to interfere in judicial proceedings. He further argued that though there is a legal framework for setting up commissions of inquiry, the prescribed procedure had not been followed.
It was stated that once a case is sub judice, the law prohibits any forum from influencing the judicial proceedings. Since the assembly members are nominated in the case, the petition said they could not serve as members of a commission of inquiry examining the same matter.
The petitioner also claimed that alleged influence over the provincial prosecutor’s office had forced Radio Pakistan to hire a private lawyer. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati and the provincial government have been named as respondents.
Read more: ATC summons witnesses in arson case on May 9
Radio Pakistan has asked the court to declare the impugned notification invalid and order the trial court to conclude the process in a transparent manner.
Separately, Peshawar courts have continued proceedings in cases arising from the May 9 riots. Another district and sessions judge recently issued non-bailable arrest warrants for 19 accused of repeated failure to appear in cases related to violent protests and damage to public property, including the attack on the Radio Pakistan building.
