Justice Munib withdraws from SC bench hearing Article 63-A review plea

ISLAMABAD: Justice Munib Akhtar has withdrawn from the Supreme Court (SC) bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa, hearing the Article 63-A review plea, ARY News reported.

The five-member larger bench comprised of Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa, Justice Munib Akhtar, Aminuddin Khan, Jamal Khan Mandokhail, and Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel was set to hear the case, but Justice Munib Akhtar recused himself from the bench.

Justice Munib wrote a letter to the Registrar of the Supreme Court, citing his reasons for not being part of the bench. The letter also mentioned his reservations about the reconstitution of the Practicing and Procedure Committee.

A four-member bench, excluding Justice Munib, headed by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, heard the case instead.

Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa read out the last paragraph of Justice Akhtar’s letter in court and adjourned the hearing till tomorrow. Despite being requested by the Chief Justice to join the bench, Justice Munib Akhtar did not become part of the bench.

The Chief Justice also rejected Justice Munib Akhtar’s letter from being made part of the court record and the hearing was adjourned till tomorrow.

Justice Munib Akhtar’ letter

In a letter written a letter to the registrar of the Supreme Court, he expressed his reservations about being part of a bench formed by the recently reconstituted Practicing and Procedure Committee.

Justice Munib stated that he is not recusing himself from the bench but he cannot be a part of this bench and requested that his letter be made part of the record in the review case.

CJP Isa remarks

In his remarks remarks regarding Justice Munib Akhtar’s letter, Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa said that Justice Munib had expressed his reservations about being part of the bench under the reconstituted Practicing and Procedure Committee.

The Chief Justice said that he respects Justice Munib Akhtar’s opinion but no judge can be forced to hear a case. He also mentioned that the review case has been pending for over two years and is an important constitutional matter that affects government affairs.

Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa also mentioned that he encourage differing opinions and always encouraged healthy debate. However, he clarified that Justice Munib Akhtar’s letter cannot be made part of the court record.

SCBA review petition

In 2022, the Supreme Court Bar filed petition in the apex court seeking review of the court’s opinion in the Presidential Reference seeking interpretation of Article 63-A.

The Bar requested to the court to review the paragraph of its opinion in the presidential reference, with regard to not counting the vote of the dissenting members and take back that opinion. ” Not counting the defecting members vote is against the spirit of the constitution,” the SC Bar petitioned. “The Supreme Court’s opinion has been equal to an intervention in the constitution,” according to the petition.

“According to the Article 63-A, defecting members can only be de-seated,” SC Bar said in its petition.

The federal government and the election commission has been made parties in the case.

The Supreme Court in its interpretation of Article 63-A, on May 17, declared that defecting members votes will not be counted in the Parliament.

It was a split decision with 3-2 majority, made by five-member bench of the apex court headed by the then Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial. The Chief Justice said that changing loyalties in the parliament damages the integrity of democracy.

What is Article 63-A?

Article 63-A in Pakistan’s Constitution deals with the consequences for parliamentarians who defect from their political parties.

If a lawmaker votes or abstains from voting against their party’s directions in three key instances;

• Election of the prime minister or chief minister
• Vote of confidence or a vote of no-confidence
• Money bill or a Constitution (amendment) bill

If a party chief believes a lawmaker has defected, they must provide a written declaration to the speaker, who then forwards it to the chief election commissioner (CEC). The CEC has 30 days to confirm the declaration, after which the lawmaker’s seat will become vacant.