ISLAMABAD: Senior Supreme Court judge Justice Qazi Faiz Isa has said in a note issued on Saturday that “decisions emanating from the courtroom, covered by the shadow of dictatorship, cannot deviate from the Constitution”.
He raised serious questions at the six-member larger bench of the Supreme Court, recalling its March 29 order to automatically adjourn the cases pending amendments to the Supreme Court Rules, 1980, on the discretionary powers of the Chief Justice of Pakistan. To make a bench.
Justice Isa said, “Since it was not permissible under the Constitution or any law to assemble a court of six honorable judges, the order of the Supreme Court dated March 29, 2023 was passed in Case No. 4, dated April 4.” could not be separated from K’s note.” In the nine-page note.
On March 29, a three-judge bench headed by Justice Qazi Faiz Isa, comprising Justice Aminuddin Khan and Justice Shahid Wahid, by a majority of 2-1, issued a sua sponte notice order awarding 20 marks to Hafiz. Quran in admission to MBBS/BDS degree under regulation 9(9) of MBBS and BDS (Admission, House Job and Internship) Regulations, 20181.
The bench said that the interest of the citizens would be best served by adjourning the hearing of this case, and all other cases under Article 184(3) of the Constitution would be adjourned until necessary. Matters are not looked at first by making laws. According to Article 191 of the Constitution.
The court further held that neither the Constitution nor the Rules empower the Chief Justice or the Registrar to constitute special benches, select judges who will sit on other benches and decide the cases to be heard by them.
Later, on April 4, a 6-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan, Justice Muneeb Akhtar, Justice Syed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Ayesha A. Malik and Justice Syed Hasan Rizvi heard the case. The case was dismissed as inconclusive.
In his note, Justice Isa, however, pointed out the “procedural irregularities” committed by the six-member larger bench, saying that the roster was released for the same day, which is done only when There was no unusual emergency, but there was no urgent matter.
Justice Isa further said that on the same day as the case roster was issued, the matter was also listed and after the court time added that no prior notice of the list of the matter was issued.
Similarly, the judge further said that notice was not issued to the Attorney General of Pakistan as per Order XXVIIA of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.
“PMDC counsel was in attendance (without prior notice), which meant he was sent orally or telephonically, contrary to the norm,” Justice Isa noted.
Referring to the Registrar Supreme Court case, Justice Isa said that Registrar Ishrat Ali, an employee of the Federal Government, who was sent on deputation to the Supreme Court to act as Registrar, was appointed by the Federal Government on 3 April 20231. ‘Withdrawn’ by notification. and ‘directed to report to the Establishment Division with immediate effect’.
“But, Mr. Ishrat Ali refused to comply with the order of the Federal Government and on April 4, 2023, he misrepresented himself as ‘Registrar’, and in the suo moto case ‘Court Roster for April 4, 2023 ‘ Intended to sign and issue. No. 4/2022 (‘Case No. 4) and intend to constitute a ‘Larger Bench’ at 2:00 p.m.,” Justice Isa added that it was said that Done ‘by order of the HCJ’, i.e. the Chief Justice.
“I wrote to Mr. Ishrat Ali that his circular is intended to negate, nullify, disobey and violate the order of the three-judge bench of the Supreme Court dated 29th March, 2023, passed in Somoto Case No. 4 of 2022. was,” Justice Isa added that he was also told that “the registrar does not have the power or authority to set aside a court order and the chief justice cannot issue administrative directions in this regard”.
Justice Isa added that the Constitution does not empower any bench or judges of the Supreme Court (however numerous) to sit in appeals against orders of the Supreme Court.
“Therefore, the so-called larger bench was wrongly constituted to hear Case No. 4”, the judge noted, noting that the larger bench did not constitute a (constitutional) court. He had none of the above jurisdictions, and could pass no orders. The judge added that the purported order dated April 4, 2023 cannot be classified as an order of the Supreme Court. It has no constitutional or legal effect.
“It would be wrong in law to refer to it as an order. Therefore, it will be called ‘Note dated 4th April’. Can the order dated 29th March 2023 be revised? Can the note dated 4th April 29th March 2023 be revised?” Can the order be construed as a revision order? The answer is that the said larger bench cannot do so,” the judge added.
He asserted that if “revisional jurisdiction was to be invoked, Case No. 4 should have been listed for hearing before the same Judges who heard it on March 15, 2023, but did not do so.” went.”
He also pointed out that six judges were assembled in a hurry and disposed of the matter within minutes.
“Had the matter been listed for hearing in the normal course as per normal procedure, given sufficient notice, and properly deliberated, the four honorable junior judges might have realized that their seniors who Some were doing, they were not doing. According to the Constitution and the law, Justice Isa wrote.
The Supreme Court judge also noted that the CJP has been designated as the ‘Master of Rules’, which he noted is a term not found in the Constitution, any statute or the Supreme Court Rules, 1980.
“The said rule of law was not enacted in accordance with any law nor can it be classified as rule of law by itself, especially when it violates the Constitution, which the Chief Justice It does not give such powers,” the judge noted.
Justice Isa also said that “if the legitimacy, integrity and credibility of the judiciary is undermined, the judiciary and the people of Pakistan will suffer irreparable harm because without it the people (they serve) will lose their confidence.”
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court heard the government’s plea to withdraw the curative review against senior judge Qazi Faiz Isa.
According to judicial sources, Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Atta Bandial will hold a hearing in this chamber on April 10. The development comes a week after the government of Pakistan filed a petition in the Supreme Court to withdraw the curative review petition against Justice Isa.
In its petition, the government said it wanted to withdraw the appeal filed against the country’s top court’s decision. “The government does not wish to pursue this case,” the petition said, seeking withdrawal of the case keeping in view the requirements of justice.
In a tweet, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the medical review was based on the ill will to “harass and intimidate” Justice Isa at the “instruction” of his predecessor Imran Khan.
The federal cabinet had approved the withdrawal of the curative review petition in July last year.
Also, the detailed judgment of the senior most judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Qazi Faiz Isa, in the Hafiz Quran Extra Numbers case was removed from the website of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, shortly after it was uploaded and reported in the national media. The detailed judgment was uploaded in both English and Urdu but was later removed.
