Pakistan Bar Council demands full court in election delay case

Pakistan Bar Council has expressed concerns over division among the Supreme Court (SC) judges and demanded full court for hearing the case related to a delay in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) elections, ARY News reported on Tuesday.

The Pakistan Bar Council spokesperson said in a statement that the full court should hear the election delay case to prevent the country from facing anarchy. The council also urged the political parties to refrain from character assassination of the judges.

It added that the verdict of the judges should be criticised instead of launching personal attacks. The council suggested devising rules for exercising the suo motu powers and a committee should be constituted to maintain reputation and coordination in the judiciary for the formation of benches.

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It further stated that the judiciary should refrain from interfering in political affairs to maintain the supremacy of the Constitutions. The council expressed disappointment over the suo motu notice on a political matter after the delay in elections.

The council’s spokesperson added that suo motu notice should not be taken on the request of two judges in the CCPO transfer case. The dissenting notes on the suo motu notice dented the reputation of the judiciary, it concluded.

Dissenting note of SC judges

On Monday, the Supreme Court judges Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail called for revisiting the “one-man show” powers enjoyed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial.

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Two SC judges including Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail issued a detailed dissenting note on Punjab and KP election suo motu notice taken by the chief justice.

The dissenting note stated that the CJP has the authority to take sou motu notice and constitute special benches but it will result in criticism and affect the public’s trust in the Supreme Court.

The judges stated that it is high time that they revisit the power of the ‘one-man show’ enjoyed by the office of the Chief Justice of Pakistan and his powers must be regulated.

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They stated in the dissenting note that this court cannot be dependent on the solitary decision of one man. “We agree with Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Yahya Afridi’s decisions on February 23” they added.

Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail in their dissenting note rejected the pleas pertaining to elections in Punjab and KP and said that the LHC should announce the verdict within three days.