ISLAMABAD:
The Additional Registrar of the Supreme Court of Pakistan submitted his reply and pleaded before the court to withdraw the contempt of court notice as he did not disobey the court but wrote a note in the light of the order Judicial Committee on Practices and Procedures of the SC.
The two-member SC bench, headed by Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and including Justice Aqeel Abbasi, on Thursday reserved its judgment to be announced later.
The court was on Thursday hearing the contempt of court notice against the Additional Registrar (Judicial) for not settling the jurisdictional issue before a certain bench ordered by the three-member SCP bench.
Justice Mansoor Ali Shah observed that the fundamental question before the court is whether the committee of judges can withdraw a case from a particular court to supersede a court order? Can a court order be modified or replaced by an administrative proceeding?
Amicus Curiae lawyer Hamid Khan argued in court that a court order cannot be modified or replaced by an administrative order.
Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah asked the amicus curiae that this was a matter of withdrawal of a case by the judges committee. The two-member panel of judges, comprising Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi and Justice Amin ud Din Khan, ignored the court order. Can the matter be referred to a full court in such a case? The Court needs help on this issue.
Justice Aqeel Abbasi observed that there is confusion in the whole matter. Rulemaking used to be the purview of the SCP. It now appears that certain powers of the Supreme Court have been restricted. This leads to questioning the 26th Amendment.
Justice Mansoor asked whether there is any precedent of constitution of seats by the executive in any country?
“No sir, nowhere are the seats constituted by the executive rather than the judiciary,” replied Hamid Khan.
Amicus Curiae lawyer Muhammad Ahsan Bhoon submitted before the Court that the matter should be referred to the Chief Justice. The Committee is right to bring cases to court. The Full Court cannot be convened by court order. This is going to create quite a problem. Some elements want to destroy institutions.
Justice Mansoor observed that the main aim of this entire practice is to save institutions and that is what we are doing.
Pakistan’s Attorney General Mansoor Usman Awan argued before the Court that the current judiciary was not fit for the contempt of court notice procedure. The Chief Justice shall constitute a bench for this purpose in accordance with the rules of the Supreme Court. This bench has no jurisdiction to issue notice of contempt of court. The procedure for contempt of court is clear and the authority to constitute a bench for this purpose rests with the CJP.
The court, after concluding the debates, reserved that its judgment would be announced later.
