Supreme Court to hear APS attack case on Oct 5

Supreme Court to hear APS attack case on Oct 5

More than 140 people, most of them students, were martyred in the terrorist attack in Dec 2014.

ISLAMABAD  After a longstanding demand of the victim’s parents to conduct a judicial inquiry into the 2014 APS massacre, the Surpeme Court of Pakistan has fixed October 5 as the date for hearing of the suo moto notice. 

A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Saqib Nisar will hear the case.

Notices have also been sent to the attorney general and advocate general of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa among others. 

It may be mentioned here that Chief Justice Saqib Nisar had had taken a suo motu notice of the matter in April this year when parents of some victims approached him while he was hearing other cases in Peshawar.

In May, the apex court had ordered probe into the APS massacre through a judicial commission comprising a judge of the Peshawar High Court (PHC).

On December 16, 2014, the horrific terrorist attack on Army Public School in Peshawar killed 141 people, including 132 schoolchildren — an attack that shook Pakistan to the core.

After the incident, the government formed National Action Plan to stem extremism and terrorism from the country.

The attack galvanised public opinion against militants, led to the creation of military courts to try ‘hardcore’ terrorists and intensive operation against militants. All six militants who were involved in the attack have since been executed, according to Inter-Service Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistan Army’s media wing.

Four were hanged in December 2015 while two were executed in May 2017.