Chief justice Umar Ata Bandial to head bench; hearing will begin at 11:30am
ISLAMABAD
An eight-member bench of the Supreme Court will begin hearing tomorrow (Thursday) three petitions challenging the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Bill 2023 that aims to curtail the chief justice’s powers, including those related to suo motu and formation of benches.
Earlier this week, the bill was passed by a joint sitting of parliament after President Dr Arif Alvi returned it. Subsequently, three separate petitions were filed by Raja Amer Khan, Chaudhry Ghulam Hussain and Mohammad Shafay Munir, among others, under Article 184(3) of the Constitution, asking the top court to set aside the bill.
The bench will be headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial and comprises Justice Ijaz ul Ahsan, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Ayesha Malik, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi and Justice Shahid Waheed.
The petitions will be heard at 11:30am on April 13, according to the supplementary cause list uploaded on the Supreme Court website.
The bill has also been challenged in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) by lawyer Saeed Aftab in a separate plea.
The federal government got the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Bill, 2023, passed in a joint session of parliament on Monday after President Arif Alvi returned it last week.
The president had returned the bill to parliament for reconsideration, citing Article 75 of the Constitution, and stating that it prima-facie travels beyond the competence of parliament and can be assailed as colourable legislation.
During the much-anticipated sitting, the house approved an amendment to the SC bill, under which a judges’ committee meeting would be convened to devise rules and regulations regarding the suo motu matters. The amendment was proposed by PML-N lawmaker Shaza Fatima Khawaja.
As per the amendment, the chief justice of Pakistan or any other member of the committee can call the meeting until the rules and regulations are finalised.
Now the bill will be presented before the president once again for his assent. If the head of the state does not give his approval within 10 days, it would be deemed to have been given.
