CJP clarifies matter of forming full court as six-judge bench resumes hearing spy agencies’ interference case
Any party pushing the judiciary towards a certain path is also akin to interference, observed Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa as the Supreme Court (SC) resumed hearing on Monday the suo motu case on intelligence agencies’ interference in judicial matters.
The six-member bench, headed by CJP Isa, and including Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Musarrat Hilali, and Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan, is hearing the case. The proceedings are being broadcast live.
Earlier, the apex court took suo motu notice of a letter written by six Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges.
In a startling letter written to the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) members, the IHC judges had accused the country’s intelligence apparatus of pressurizing judges through abduction and torture of their relatives and secret surveillance inside their homes.
The letter, addressed to CJP Isa, Supreme Court Justices Mansoor Ali Shah and Munib Akhtar, and chief justices of the IHC and the Peshawar High Court, also questioned if there exists a state police to “intimidate” and coerce judges.
The letter, dated March 25, was signed by Justices Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, Babar Sattar, Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan, Arbab Muhammad Tahir and Saman Rafat Imtiaz of the IHC.
The SC’s suo motu came after former chief justice of Pakistan Tassaduq Hussain Jillani recused himself from heading a one-man inquiry commission formed by the government to investigate the claims.
The situation unfolded after a group of lawyers and civil society members urged the top court to initiate suo motu proceedings on the matter, as it rejected the ‘powerless’ one-man commission.
Through a letter, they urged the top court to take “cognisance of the matter in its jurisdiction under Article 184(3) of the Constitution as this issue eminently relates to public interest and to the enforcement of fundamental rights”.
It is learnt that being chairman of the committee, the chief justice suggested taking the suo motu notice which was endorsed by committee members Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Munib Akhtar.
In his letter sent to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif dated April 1, Jillani said, “Since the letter is addressed to the members of the Supreme Judicial Council and its chairman, the chief justice of Pakistan, it would be violative of judicial propriety for me to inquire into a matter which may fall within the jurisdiction of a constitutional body which is the Supreme Judicial Council or the Supreme Court of Pakistan itself.”
Thanking the premier and the cabinet for reposing confidence in him to head the commission, the retired judge stated the terms of the reference for the inquiry are not “strictly” relevant to the subject under consideration.
Justice (retd) Jillani further added that the request made in the letter is for an “institutional consultation”, with the terms of the mechanism suggested in the letter. He further added that the letter may not strictly fall within the parameters of Article 209 of the Constitution.
“For the afore-referred reasons, I recuse myself to head the commission and proceed with the inquiry.”
Today’s hearing
Addressing the debate over convening a full court or not, the CJP at the outset of the hearing clarified that a three-member committee decided to form a bench consisting of all available judges. Justice Yahya Afridi recused himself from the bench, while two judges are not available for a full court, he said.
CJP Isa remarked that the country was seriously divided. “Pulling us to one side or the other is against the independence of the judiciary. Don’t pressure us to run on your path; pushing the judiciary on your path is also interference,” he maintained.
Moving on, the chief justice asked Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Awan whether he had read the recommendations submitted by the IHC judges. To which the AGP replied in the negative.
Adding to the matter, Justice Minallah stated that these were not suggestions, but rather a “charge sheet”.
On the order of the CJP, AGP Awan read out the recommendations in the courtroom.
The IHC judges began by appreciating the apex court for taking suo motu notice of the matter. The judges’ recommendations include taking into account the division of power between the executive and agencies. Moreover, they deny any division among judges, asking for the impression, peddled on social media and mainstream media, to be done away with.
The recommendations further call for amending the code of conduct of the judges of the superior courts as well as district courts; completely banning meetings between judges and intelligence agencies’ members; any judge facing interference should inform immediately, and a permanent cell should be established in the SC and high courts where judges can submit complaints, and decisions on the complaints should be taken immediately in accordance with the law.
