Review plea: Death-row convicts challenge SC order

Petitioners contend apex court did not take into consideration errors apparent in the record

ISLAMABAD: As many as six prisoners, convicted by the military courts, have challenged the top court’s August 29 decision to uphold their death sentence.

The Supreme Court in its judgment had dismissed 17 appeals against the death sentence awarded by the military courts. The review petitions have been on behalf of Asma Jehangir and Advocate Col (retd) Muhammad Akram under Article 188 of the Constitution.

The petitioners contended that the apex court did not take into consideration errors apparent on the face of the record and requested the court to review its judgment to provide justice.

Jehangir stated that the court did not address the argument that the convicts were arrested many years ago under Action (in Aid of Civil Power) Regulations, 2002, which has been challenged as being ultra vires of the Constitution.

The top court also ignored the fact that the convicts were being kept incommunicado and under arbitrary detention in an illegal manner before being tried and convicting them in the military courts.

The August 29 judgment accepts that military courts can act as kangaroo courts and bypass all forums which undermines both constitutional protection and administration of justice for civilians, who may be tried by military courts.

The judgment under review erred in presuming that the services of the legal counsel were refused by the victims, whereas it has nowhere been denied that even family members were not given intimation of the whereabouts of the accused.

The petitioner said that the judgment has ignored the fact that record of the trial court was not disclosed to the counsels and was opposed vehemently before the august court as well.

The record was only shown to the legal counsels after the apex court intervened and then too they were not allowed or permitted to take any notes of the records.

The judgment under review erred in considering whether the confession relied upon was even made before the magistrate as the statement did not appear in the record, seen by the counsel of the convict.

The apex court judgment also ignored that the confession made (if at all) after many years of illegal detention and isolation was made under duress and was thus not made in voluntary manner.

The legality of the military trial upheld by the Supreme Court is not even in conformity with the rules and procedures laid down by the Pakistan Army Act, 1952 and the Pakistan Army Rules, 1954.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 28^th, 2016.