Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Qazi Faez Isa on Tuesday questioned how the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023 could diminish the powers of the apex court.
He made the remarks as a full court resumed hearing pleas against the law which requires the formation of benches on constitutional matters of public importance by a committee of three senior judges of the court. Like last time, the hearing was streamed live on television.
Key points:
- CJP Isa says court wants to try and conclude case today
- Lawyer Ikram Chaudhry argues an effort has been made to enter into an area not in Parliament’s domain
- “Is Parliament not competent to legislate in relation to access to justice?” asks Justice Minallah
- “You can raise a finger on the Parliament but you are quiet on the omnipotency of the chief justice,” remarks CJP
Headed by CJP Isa, the bench consisted of Justice Sardar Tariq Masood, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Aminuddin Khan, Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhel, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Ayesha A. Malik, Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Justice Shahid Waheed and Justice Musarrat Hilali.
In a pre-emptive move, the Supreme Court — then led by former CJP Umar Ata Bandial — in April had barred the government from implementing the bill seeking to curtail the chief justice of Pakistan’s powers once it became a law.
During the hearing today, the court heard arguments by parties opposing the law, including the PTI, and then adjourned the hearing till Monday (Oct 9).
“That shall be the last day of the hearing,” Justice Isa said. He also told the lawyers that only one case would be fixed for hearing on Oct 9 and asked the counsels to be prepared if the proceedings continued till late at night.
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