ISLAMABAD: Supreme Court on Monday directed Attorney General of Pakistan Mansoor Awan to submit a parliamentary record by Tuesday (tomorrow) in petitions against the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Bill 2023, aimed at reducing the powers of the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP)
On the last hearing, SC issued notices to the government, political parties, bar councils, AGP, and others to submit their response in the case.
CJP Umar Ata Bandial heads the bench and comprises Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi, Justice Ayesha Malik, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Justice Ijaz ul Ahsan, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, and Justice Shahid Waheed.
At the start of the hearing, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) also forwarded a plea for the creation of a full court bench to hear the matter.
After being asked by CJP, the attorney general Mansoor Awan hoped that the Parliamentary proceedings’ record would be received on Tuesday.
AGP in his arguments before the apex court, said that the issue of benches and appeals in the court has been fixed in the bill. He added that the right to change lawyer has also been provided to the petitioner in the bill.
He said the issues fixed in the law were administrative and added that the full court finalized the rules of the apex court, and also, the full court can only carry out the amendment.
Justice Ayesha Malik responded to the AGP, saying any bench could hear the cases at the apex court.
PML-N’s arguments in Supreme Court
After the completion of AGP’s arguments for the formation of a full court, PML-N counsel Barrister Salahuddin said in his arguments that for the first time, the implementation of the law was stopped via a stay order.
He said pleas for the full court formation are given routinely; the same happened in the cases of former CJP Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and Justice Qazi Faez Isa.
Justice Ahsan said Justice Isa’s matter was forwarded to the CJP; the chief justice was not hearing the case by himself.
Chief Justice said the cases of Justice Isa and Iftikhar Chaudhry were of presidential reference. The trial of the Supreme Court is initiated whenever there are charges against any of the judges, he remarked.
He said the full court is only formed when the case is of deep concern.
