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KP, Punjab election: 5 judges resume SC listening to after 4 dissociate themselves from suo motu – Pakistan

In an surprising growth, 5 judges of the Supreme Courtroom — as a substitute of a nine-member bench — on Monday resumed listening to the suo motu proceedings relating to the delay within the announcement of a date for elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The unique bench included:

  • Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial
  • Justice Ijazul Ahsan
  • Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah
  • Justice Munib Akhtar
  • Justice Yahya Afridi
  • Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi
  • Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail
  • Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar
  • Justice Athar Minallah

In its order on Feb 23, all of the 9 judges despatched the matter to the CJP as soon as once more, asking for the reconstitution of the bench in mild of the extra notes authored by Justice Mandokhail, Justice Shah, Justice Afridi and Justice Minallah. All 4 of the judges who wrote the extra notes had objected to the structure of the bench on a number of grounds.

Two of those judges had additionally questioned the SC’s jurisdiction to invoke Article 184(3), which pertains to its suo motu powers, on this matter.

Learn: Suo motu: Key points from the 4 dissenting SC judges

CJP Bandial, Justice Shah, Justice Mandokhail, Justice Akhtar and Justice Mazhar are presently listening to the case.

Justice Ahsan and Justice Naqvi, whose inclusion to the unique bench was opposed by the coalition authorities and the Pakistan Bar Council, in addition to Justice Minallah and Justice Afridi have distanced themselves from the bench. “These 4 judges have proven grace and stepped away from the bench,” stated the chief justice on the outset of the listening to.

Division within the bench had additionally emerged within the very first listening to after Justice Mandokhail, who is an element of the present bench, objected to the suo motu discover itself as “unjustified”. The decide had additionally talked about audio recordings that purportedly featured fellow decide — Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi.

The reconsituted bench started listening to the case round 1:30pm immediately after two delays in its scheduled timings of 11:30am and 12:30pm.

petitioned the Supreme Courtroom for the formation of a full court docket — comprising all judges besides Justice Ahsan and Justice Naqvi — to conduct the suo motu proceedings.

The joint petition, filed by senior counsel Farooq H. Naek, Mansoor Usman Awan and Kamran Murtaza on behalf of the PPPP, PML-N and JUI-F, respectively, says the prayer has been made “in the perfect curiosity of justice and to strengthen the individuals’s confidence within the Supreme Courtroom”.

It’s crucial that the complete court docket — minus the 2 judges, who’ve already disclosed their minds within the matter — be constituted to listen to the case within the curiosity of justice and equity, contends the petition, which has been moved beneath Order 33 Rule 6 of the Supreme Courtroom Guidelines 1980.

The petition argued that when the case was taken up by the nine-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial on Feb 23, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail learn out a be aware and raised objections to the impact that for the reason that two-member bench consisting of Justice Ahsan and Justice Naqvi had already rendered a particular opinion on the difficulty as recorded within the court docket’s Feb 16 order, it could quantity to a violation of Article 10A if they continue to be a part of the bigger bench.

Justice Mandokhail, the ruling events recalled, had additional acknowledged that it was not acceptable to refer the matter to the CJP beneath Article 184(3) and that the suo motu motion taken by the latter was not justified. Later, the Supreme Courtroom on the identical date issued notices to the related stakeholders and that the candidates appeared earlier than the court docket on Feb 24 by their counsel and browse a joint assertion, searching for the recusal of Justice Ahsan and Justice Naqvi from any matter involving the PPPP, PML-N and JUI-Pakistan and their management.

In accordance with the petition, these circumstances have raised a number of questions of immense authorized, constitutional and public significance as recorded within the CJP’s be aware whereas invoking suo motu jurisdiction.

January 14 and January 18, respectively, in an try and pave the best way for snap polls.

On Jan 24, the ECP wrote letters to the principal secretaries of Punjab and KP governors, suggesting elections in Punjab between April 9 and 13, and in KP between April 15 and 17.

On the similar time, the PTI had on Jan 27 approached the LHC searching for orders for the Punjab governor to instantly announce a date for an election within the province following which the court docket had directed the ECP to instantly announce the date for elections after session with the governor.

In the meantime, President Arif Alvi had additionally urged the ECP on Feb 8 to “instantly announce” the date for polls in KP and Punjab and put an finish to “harmful speculative propaganda” on each the provincial meeting and basic elections.

Nonetheless, to date, the governors of the 2 provinces have refra­ined from offering any date for the polls on a number of pretexts.

Final week, President Alvi had invited Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja for an pressing assembly relating to consultations on election dates however the ECP informed him he had no role within the announcement of dates for basic elections to provincial assemblies and the fee was conscious of its constitutional obligation on this regard.

Subsequently, the president on Monday unilaterally introduced April 9 because the date for holding basic elections for the Punjab and KP assemblies.

The transfer drew sharp criticism from his political opponents, who accused him of appearing like a PTI employee whereas the ECP stated it could announce the ballot schedule solely after the “competent authority” fixes the date.


It is a growing story that’s being up to date because the state of affairs evolves. Preliminary studies within the media can generally be inaccurate. We’ll try to make sure timeliness and accuracy by counting on credible sources resembling involved, certified authorities and our employees reporters.


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