PESHAWAR, Feb 27: A full bench of the Peshawar High Court on Monday observed that it would take a decision on writ petitions regarding remission to under-trial prisoners in the light of a judgment of the Supreme Court in that regard.

The bench comprising Justice Shehzad Akber Khan, Justice Ijaz Afzal and Justice Fazalur Rehman adjourned hearing of eight writ petitions with the direction to some of the counsel to provide a copy of the Supreme Court’s verdict.

The bench has to decide the question whether a prisoner could be granted remission for the period before his conviction when he or she was under trial.

The petitions have been filed by Mohammad Afzal Khan, Arshad Khan and six other people. Some of the petitioners are complainant in criminal cases and have challenged the provision of remission to the convicted prisoners in their cases for the period when they were under trial.

The remaining petitioners are convicts who have challenged the non-provision of remission to them by the prison authority in their cases.

Advocate Saeed Akhter appeared for some of the petitioners and contended that apart from a judgment by a division bench of the Peshawar High Court the Balochistan High Court had also decided the matter and ruled that remission could not be granted to prisoners before the period of their conviction.

He stated that the apex court had also decided the same question in different appeals originating out of judgments of the high courts.

The bench observed that after going through the judgment of the apex court it would decide the matter in accordance with that order.

The bench directed the petitioners to provide copy of the said judgment.

Petitioner Mohammad Afzal stated that his rival Nigar Ahmad was arrested in a murder case on May 25, 1995 and was sentenced to life imprisonment by a trial court in Haripur on Oct 31, 1998. He said that the trial court also granted him benefit of section 382-B of the Criminal Procedure Code under which the period in prison before conviction had to be counted in his prison term.

He stated that the prison authorities had also granted him remission for the period before his conviction, which was illegal as under section 382-B only the period of imprisonment could be included in the prison term and not the remissions granted by competent authorities during that period.

Petitioner Arshad Khan stated that he was convicted in 2002 by the trial court, whereas he was arrested on May 19, 1999. He stated that he was extended benefit of section 382-B CrPC, but the prison authorities did not extend him the remissions granted by competent authorities during the period of his imprisonment before his conviction. He requested the court to grant him the remissions.

A division bench of the Peshawar High Court in May 2002 ruled that the remissions announced by different competent authorities could not be given to prisoners for the period before their conviction.

The bench headed by Justice Nasirul Mulk had dismissed a habeas corpus petition filed by an additional secretary of the Housing and Physical Planning Department, Akber Marwat, who had prayed the court to release him as he had already undergone his prison term.

Previously, before the May 2002 judgment, when the prisoners were granted benefit of section 382-B of the Criminal Procedure Code, the prison authorities used to grant remission to prisoners for the detention period before their conviction.