Islamabad, Nov 12: After the amendment to the Army Act 1952, the Pakistan Supreme Court will no longer be able take cognisance of the hundreds of cases of "disappearance" that ousted Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry was inquiring into.

The suo motu cognisance taken by Chuadhry was a big embarrassment to the Musharraf regime, and now the apex court will not look into it after it has been informed that the military authorities had taken cognisance of the crimes allegedly committed by the people picked up by the intelligence agencies, the Daily Times has said in its editorial.

"The habeas corpus provisions could now be avoided by simply notifying the arrests under the Army Act. The backdated law will take the cases of "disappearance" off the rostrum, " it said.

The daily further said that the courts martial under the Army Act have their own rules, adding, "People picked up under the dragnet of the amended Army Act will not be able to demand the registration of an FIR with the police. Once picked up, it will become more difficult to find out where the "disappeared" person has gone. "

President General Pervez Musharraf has amended the Army Act 1952 to grant the army powers to try civilians in military courts, as earlier the act only had provisions enabling the army to try civilians if they were accessory to any criminal act committed by an employee of the army.

But, now the amendment enlarges this power to include all the Penal Code crimes that can be interpreted as being against the "security of Pakistan" - a term that is so loose that it can be taken to mean whatever the regime wants it to mean

"In fact, considering that there are abstractions like "defence of Pakistan" in the amended Army Act, we may expect a proliferation of military courts in the country. Almost anyone can be picked up and accused of treason or sedition or terrorism and sent before a military officer posing as a judge, " the daily opined.

These laws are abominable. Musharraf has come a long way from being a defender of the media and civil rights to being the chief prosecutor of them in the country. "If and when the transfer of power takes place, the political parties must not forget to remove these from the statute books, " it concluded. (ANI)