ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan (SC) on Thursday reserved its verdict on the government’s appeals challenging the annulment of the amendments to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) rules.
The 5-member larger bench of the apex court, headed by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, granted a week’s extension for further written arguments from the involved parties. Former jailed prime minister Imran Khan appeared before the court via video link in the case.
During the hearing, judicial assistant Farooq H. Naik, Khawaja Haris and Imran Khan addressed the court.
Farooq H. Naik submitted his written arguments, supporting Justice Mansoor Ali Shah’s note. Naik clarified that while he aligned with Makhdoom Ali Khan’s arguments, his submissions were independent and based on his own observations of the Supreme Court decision.
Following Naik’s presentation, Khawaja Haris, former lawyer of Imran Khan in the case, highlighted the infringement of fundamental rights in the main case. Harris emphasized that the NAB amendments violated Articles 9, 14, 25, and 24 of the Constitution.
The federal and provincial governments had challenged the apex court’s September 15 majority judgment, pronounced by a bench led by then Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial.
In 2022, amendments to the National Accountability (NAB) Ordinance were introduced by the Pakistan Democratic Movement government, and was challenged by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder Imran Khan. Imran Khan contended that the amendments would effectively shield public officeholders from white-collar crime prosecution.
In response to Imran Khan’s appeal, the Supreme Court ruled on September 15 that public officials whose cases were affected by the PDM-led government’s amendments must face corruption references anew.
Subsequently, in October 2023, the government filed a petition arguing procedural impropriety in the majority judgment, seeking its annulment.
During proceedings, PTI founder in his arguments said that the NAB amendments will make things easier for him, but will make the country bankrupt.
Imran Khan suggested the Supreme Court should appoint the NAB Chairman, stressing that the bureau remained beyond his control even during his tenure.
Chief Justice Qazi Faiz Isa inquired about any additional points Khan wished to raise, to which Khan responded, expressing concerns over the court’s previous remarks about political point scoring. “I didn’t understand what political point scoring was done?” He also mentioned that the live broadcast of the case was not allowed due to a character assassination attempt.
Chief Justice Qazi Faiz Isa responded, “Judges don’t explain their decisions, you can file a revision.”
“I oppose the government’s appeal in the NAB amendments case. If the amendments are made, it will be my loss. My watch, worth 2 crore rupees, was shown to be worth 3 billion rupees,” Imran Khan continued.
During the session, Justice Jamal Mandokhel questioned Khan about Parliament’s authority to amend, to which Khan argued that the government, formed through Form 47, lacked the mandate for amendments.
Justice Athar Minullah pressed Khan on his stance regarding NAB reforms, while questioning the credibility of his opposition. Khan expressed frustration saying “After what NAB did to me in just 5 days, credibility is questionable.”
The PTI founder emphasized the importance of an anti-corruption watchdog and advocated for NAB reform and the establishment of a dedicated anti-corruption institution.
Following arguments from all parties, the apex court reserved the verdict and granted a week for further written arguments for the parties involved.
