Justice Munib Akhtar, who refused to be a part of the five-member bench listening to a assessment petition difficult the Supreme Courtroom’s verdict on defection clause (Article 63-A), expressed his dissent over the proceedings carried out by the chief justice-led 4 judges bench in his absence.
“4 judges couldn’t have sat and heard the matter that was listed earlier than a 5-member Bench,” Justice Munib acknowledged in his second letter to the highest court docket’s registrar on Monday.
It’s noteworthy to say right here that the initially fashioned five-member bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa, had comprised Justice Amin-Ud-Din Khan, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Mazhar Alam, and Justice Munib.
The jurist’s second letter got here after the highest court docket adjourned the listening to on the assessment petition after Justice Munib didn’t attend yesterday’s listening to for which he wrote a letter to the SC registrar, stating that he didn’t recuse from the bench, nevertheless, he can’t be part of a bench that was constituted by Observe and Process Committee.
Nonetheless, because the listening to started, Justice Munib was unavailable from the bench, following which the CJP adjourned the listening to until right this moment (Tuesday), saying that the decide could be requested to rejoin the bench.
In his earlier letter, Justice Munib additionally demanded to make his letter part of the case file, to which CJP Isa mentioned this might not occur. He added that it will have been acceptable had Justice Munib given his opinion after being a part of the bench.
Justice Munib, in his contemporary correspondence to the highest court docket, acknowledged: “What seems to have occurred prima facie appears to be an entire departure from all precedent, and relevant regulation and guidelines. Respectfully, it’s not acceptable to me. I’ve all of the respect for the 4 judges who sat in court docket and presupposed to conduct the listening to within the CRP [Civil Review Petition].”
Commenting on a receipt he acquired right this moment from the bigger bench after the listening to, he wrote: “It’s submitted that the Civil Evaluation Petition No. 197 of 2022 got here up for listening to earlier than Bigger Bench headed by the Hon’ble Chief Justice of Pakistan right this moment i.e. 30.09.2024 and the Hon’ble Courtroom whereas adjourning the matter for tomorrow, has been happy to direct the Registrar to put the order handed right this moment earlier than Hon’ble Justice Munib Akhtar with the request to affix the Bench.”
Nonetheless, if his lordship doesn’t achieve this the Committee constituted beneath part 2 of the Supreme Courtroom (Observe and Process) Act, 2023 is required to nominate one other decide in his place on the bench, it added.
“If authorized, the moment observe together with licensed copy of order could also be forwarded to Sr. P.S. to the Hon’ble Decide.”
Justice Munib mentioned, “That purported order clearly reveals that the matter was, as listed, to be mounted earlier than the five-member Bench. Nonetheless, I didn’t take part in right this moment’s listening to and it seems that 4 discovered Judges, i.e. the Chief Justice, Justice Amin-ud- Din Khan, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail and Justice Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel sat in Courtroom and carried out the listening to of the CRP.”
“I’m at a loss to grasp as to how the five-member Bench constituted in phrases as set out in my earlier observe despatched to you right this moment may very well be ‘transformed’ right into a 4 Member Bench”.
“On the finish of the purported order there’s area for 5 signatures, and that the place I might have signed is (clearly) clean,” he argued, including: “This additional confirms that the CRP was to be heard by a five-member bench.”
Elevating objections to the CJP Isa-led bench’s order, Justice Munib mentioned that the directive couldn’t be known as a “judicial order”.
“I have to nonetheless regretfully, although respectfully, file my protest as to what has been carried out,” he wrote.
“Subsequently, the route contained in para 4 of the purported order (which prima facie is in regulation no order in any respect) is of no consequence.”
“Nonetheless I present respect to the 4 judges and reply to their question. Within the circumstances, I imagine that the one response that I may give, within the accessible info and circumstances, is to as soon as once more draw consideration to my earlier observe of right this moment addressed to the registrar,” he concluded.
CJP summons SC key panel’s session
Following Justice Munib’s dissenting letter on the bench listening to Article 63A’s assessment petition, CJP Isa summoned a session of the highest court docket’s Observe and Process Committee on Tuesday (right this moment) at 9:00am, sources advised Geo Information.
You will need to point out right here {that a} three-member committee fashioned beneath the SC Observe and Process Modification Ordinance has constituted 9 bigger benches to listen to assessment petitions pending since 2018.
The committee had additionally issued a judges’ roster within the mentioned benches for the hearings of the circumstances.
