ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) of Pakistan issued a formal order on Friday to dispose of the cases of the accused involved in the May 9 incidents within four months. The court has said in the order that the trial courts should decide the cases as soon as possible and the accused should be ensured the right to a fair trial.
According to the order issued, the trial decision under the Anti-Terrorism Act should be made within seven days; However, because of the nature and number of the current cases, the court has given four months, which will be counted from the day of receipt of the decision.
The court has further directed that the applications for exemption from appearance of the accused against whom more than one case is registered should be decided by the law.
The court also took notice of the fact that several accused have taken the stand on non-provision of challans and other records, which is a matter of concern for the trial courts.
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The Supreme Court has empowered the Chief Justices and Administrative Judges of the High Courts to seek reports from the trial courts every 15 days, if they deem it appropriate, to monitor the progress of the cases. At the same time, the High Courts and Monitoring Judges have been directed to ensure fair and timely trials.
This decision has been taken given the complaints of the accused regarding the delay in the cases of the May 9 violent incidents and a fair trial.
