- The minister says the judges presented a plea to the Supreme Court.
- Minister says the Supreme Court is not the right forum.
- He says the 27th Amendment completely changes jurisdiction.
State Law Minister Aqeel Malik said on Thursday that the Federal Constitutional Court, not the Supreme Court, is authorized to hear constitutional issues following the 27th Amendment.
“The judges have tried to present their petition before the Supreme Court, but the court is not the right forum for this application,” he said while speaking on Geographic news program “Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Saath”.
Malik said the Supreme Court and the FCC had adopted their respective rules, adding: “The constitutional court has been established, and all cases of constitutional nature will now be heard by it.” He wondered why the judges had taken their plea to the Supreme Court in the first place.
According to him, the judges’ petition “should have been presented to the Constitutional Court,” since only the FCC is authorized to hear it after the amendment.
Malik also rejected claims about any compromise on judicial independence, stating that the authority to transfer judges (previously held by the president) had now been assigned to the Judicial Commission.
“Resignation is the prerogative of judges,” he said, adding that a misleading impression is being created about judicial resignations.
Meanwhile, sources said four judges of the Islamabad High Court have decided to challenge the 27th Amendment in the Supreme Court, with a draft of their petition prepared and submitted. Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Justice Babar Sattar, Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz and Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan are among the petitioners, sources added.
However, Supreme Court sources confirmed that no petition had yet been filed by the judges against the amendment. Sources from the Federal Constitutional Court stated that no such allegation had been made there either.
The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)-led ruling coalition passed the 27th Amendment earlier this month, which brought changes to the judicial structure and military command.
A major structural change came in the form of the FCC, which was established as a new judicial forum with equal representation from all provinces. The amendment empowered the FCC to exercise suo motu authority over petitions.
The judicial reform, part of the latest amendments, not only paved the way for dissolving the Constitution Benches but also, through the Supreme Court Practice and Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2025, transferred the authority to constitute chambers for hearing cases to a three-member committee headed by the Chief Justice.
The amendment gives the president and prime minister key roles in judicial appointments, while reducing certain powers of the Supreme Court and transferring some of its authority to the newly created FCC.
Following the passage of the amendment, Supreme Court judges Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Athar Minallah resigned from their positions in separate letters to President Asif Ali Zardari.
Jurists criticized the 27th amendment, calling it a “serious attack on the Constitution of Pakistan”. However, the federal government described the judges’ resignations as “political speeches” and the latter’s accusations as “unconstitutional.”
Two days later, LHC judge Shams Mehmood Mirza followed in the footsteps of the jurists and resigned from his position “in protest against the newly enacted 27th Constitutional Amendment.”
