A six-member larger bench of the top court sets to adjudicate case pertaining to the letters of six judges of Islamabad High Court (IHC) for hearing on April 30.
As per cause list of the Supreme Court several pleas have been clubbed the top court will take up collectively during the week commencing from Monday as the matter has been fixed for hearing on Tuesday. Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa will preside over the hearing while Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Musarrat Hilali, and Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan will also be part of the bench. The top court had conducted first hearing on April 3 in this suo moto case.
On March 25, six judges of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) wrote a letter to the Supreme Judicial Council regarding “interference of intelligence agencies in judicial matters”. The six judges are Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani, Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, Justice Babar Sattar, Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan, Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir, and Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz.
IHC response to developments
A full court meeting of the IHC this past week unanimously decided to give an institutional response to any meddling in courts’ affairs. The meeting was held on Tuesday last with Chief Justice Aamer Farooq in the chair to finalise proposals before submission to the Supreme Court. Earlier, the Islamabad High Court Chief Justice had sought suggestions from all judges, including those of district and sessions court, on how to tackle the matter.
Islamabad Bar stance
The Islamabad High Court Bar Association filed a constitutional petition in the Supreme Court, seeking a transparent and fair investigation of the letter of six judges alleging interference in judicial affairs. The petitioner prayed the apex court to take action against those found guilty of influencing the judiciary.
The petition stated that the issue raised by the judges was of serious nature. “If the apex court deems it necessary, it should refer the matter to the Supreme Judicial Council for review,” it demanded. The petitioner submitted that an independent judiciary was the protector of the Constitution and the sole source of justice. “No compromise on the independence of the judiciary is acceptable in any circumstances,” it affirmed.
How it began
On March 25, six judges of the Islamabad High Court wrote a letter to the Supreme Judicial Council regarding “interference of intelligence agencies in judicial matters”. The Supreme Court earlier this month took suo moto notice and hinted at constituting a full court to hear the matter. Before that, the federal government set up a one-man inquiry commission which could not initiate any proceeding due to refusal of its head, former chief justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani.
