ISLAMABAD, March 16: After much ado, parliamentary leaders agreed on Thursday to reestablish military courts for a period of two years.
“We have agreed to reestablish military courts for a period of two years, considering it is an issue of national importance,” speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq told journalists. Sadiq said though the law relating to the courts had not been changed, the extension is conditional.
Finance minister Ishaq Dar added, “The decision was made in view of the fact that the country is fighting a war against terrorism.”
He added, “An oversight committee comprising parliamentary leaders of both the Houses will be formed to plan a future line of action at the conclusion of the two-year period.”
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Continued on page 7
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Aitzaz Ahsan said that the opposition had agreed to the proposal conditionally after due consultation today. “The government has agreed to four of the nine demands put forth by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP),” he said. Without elaborating further, Aitzaz said, “We [PPP] did not insist on appointment of session judges in the courts.” He said that a bill on the courts will be tabled before the National Assembly on Monday.
Later, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s Shah Mehmood Qureshi told journalists that no one should be targeted [after reestablishment of the courts] based on which religious beliefs they hold.
On Wednesday, Supreme Court declared that civilian laws are not applicable in military courts. The court held that provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) would not be relevant in a case involving an offence dealt with by the Field General Court Martial under the Army Act of 1952.
The military courts were established through the 21st Constitutional Amendment after the December 2014 attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar which left 150 people, mostly children, dead.-Agencies
