ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan submitted a petition in the Supreme Court on Saturday, requesting the top judiciary to declare two controversial pieces of legislation granting sweeping powers to the country’s military and intelligence agencies as unconstitutional.
The Pakistan Army and Official Secrets (Amendment) Acts, 2023, were passed by both houses of parliament under the administration of ex-premier Shehbaz Sharif and primarily targeted Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, though their content and manner of approval was challenged by prominent lawmakers sitting in the government and the opposition.
The two laws allowed the country’s security and intelligence establishment to raid and detain any citizen and try civilians in military courts.
They were sent to President Arif Alvi, Khan’s close ally, for endorsement. While it was widely reported last month in the media that he had given his nod to the bills and turned them into laws, he denied the information in a social media post wherein he mentioned he had issues with the bills and instructed his staff to return them unsigned.
“The President never assented to the Official Secrets (Amendment) Bill, 2023 and Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill, 2023, rather he disagreed and even in his [social media] post he stated that he confirmed many times from his staff within stipulated time that whether they have been returned [to parliament] and was assured that they were,” said the petition.
“Hence, publication of impugned Official Secrets (Amendment) Act, 2023 and impugned Pakistan Army (Amendment) Act, 2023 in the official gazette contrary to the Constitutional provisions as enunciated under Article 75 of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973, is Un-Constitutional,” it added.
Khan, who is currently facing a prison trial carried out by a special court for mishandling a confidential diplomatic cable for political purposes under the Official Secrets Act, said both pieces of legislation were against the fundamental rights guaranteed by the constitution since they took away the protection of citizen’s freedom, due process, and fair trial.
Several leaders and supporters of Khan’s PTI party faced the threat of being tried in military courts after their arrest in the wake of violent protests on May 9 when the former PM was briefly detained on graft charges in Islamabad.
The top PTI leader, who was arrested on corruption allegations in the beginning of August, has also been in a high-security jail, with his legal team trying to secure his bail and bring him out of prison.