Islamabad:
The Committee formed under the Law of Practice and Procedure of the Supreme Court, 2023, has ineffective the Office of the Interim President of Pakistan (CJP) adopting a procedure.
The Committee, led by the president of the Supreme Court of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi and comprising Judge Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Judge Aminuddin Khan, on May 29 they made a new procedure to regulate their business.
The registrar of the Supreme Court, Muhammad Salem Khan, has issued a notification in this regard. The same notification has also risen on the website of the Supreme Court this week.
The notification said that the Law of the Supreme Court (practice and procedure), 2023, has transferred to the Committee the powers of the Constitution of banks and powers that were previously exercised by the CJP.
He declared that the Law of the Supreme Court (practice and procedure), 2023 is not comprehensive to deal with many eventualities such as emergencies and absence of the CJP to be abroad. “It is necessary to regulate such gaps not covered by the Law of the Supreme Court (practice and procedure), 2023”. Therefore, in the exercise of the powers conferred by Subsection 2 of Section 2 of the Law of the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure), 2023, the Committee did a procedure to regulate its business.
The notification indicated that these procedures can be called the Supreme Court Committee procedure (practice and procedure), 2025 that will enter into force at the same time.
Clause 1 of the procedure establishes that the president, the CJP, will convene the committee meeting as necessary, physically or by virtual means, with the purpose of the Constitution and the reconstitution of the banks.
Clause 2 of the procedure establishes that a minimum of two members will form the quorum of a committee meeting. Clause 4 says that the Committee will constitute and reconstitute banks when necessary with regular intervals, preferably monthly or biweekly.
“Once finished and issued, no change will be made, except as provided in these procedures. Any change in the Constitution of the Committee, including the change of the president or a member, will not invalidate the constitution of the banks ended by the Committee,” he says.
Clause 5 says that every time the president, the CJP, proceeds abroad or is not available to preside over the meeting, may constitute a special committee to deal with issues related to the reconstitution of banks if any of the urgent situations arises as a sudden disease or absence of a judge, death or challenge of a judge.
The special committee will be strictly limited to the Emergencies and will be recorded in writing, indicating reasons. This temporary alteration will be informed to the committee at its next meeting.
Clause 6 says that the SC registrar will keep the registration of all meetings, decisions and alterations.
Clause 7 says that these procedures will take effect despite the opposite contained in any other rule for current time. Clause 8 says that the Committee can amend these procedures from time to time, as it is considered necessary.
Some legal experts believe that clause 5 of the procedure of the Practice and Procedure Committee of the recently notified Supreme Court 2025 is contrary to the constitutional provision and the purpose of this procedure is to make the CJP office act to be reduced.
The former judge of the Superior Court of Lahore, Shahid Jamil, said that rule 5 of the Supreme Court Committee (Practice and Procedure), 2025 is in direct conflict with article 180, which deals with the appointment of CJP in action, especially when the senior holder is absent from Pakistan.
“It is incumbent to the President to designate the Interim CJP, who will be the most important judge of the Supreme Court. The most important, the interim CJP will act as the CJP during the absence.
Shahid Jamil said that rule 5 is authorizing for the consideration of a special committee, if the president of the committee is abroad or is not available. “The law has not used the word president of the committee, only the CJP becomes one of the members together with the senior judge of the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Bank.
In the absence of the CJP, the most important judge, after the appointment as an interim CJP, would perform all the functions and exercise all the powers of the CJP, ”he added.
Some legal experts said that the Committee led by the CJP Afidi has an exclusive power to decide on the cases that will be sent to constitutional banks for the award.
However, the Committee led by the CJP Aphridi and comprising Judge Shah and Judge Khan have been redundant since a regular meeting is not held to discuss the constitution of the banks.
Fuentes revealed to the Express PAkGazette that there has been practically a committee meeting since Judge Afridi took over the CJP. Perhaps, there was only a committee meeting on May 29 in which the procedure was approved by the members of the Committee.
The sources said there is no discussion or debate about how the cases are being marked and banks are held.
Some higher lawyers wonder why two senior judges award as division banks, while Junior judges are part of the three -members banks.
It is known that only the proposed list is sent to the members of the Committee for approval. During the mandate of CJP Afridi, there was no charges of the Committee meetings on the SC website.
Speaking about the purpose of the procedure, a lawyer said that it was mainly made to introduce clause 5 in which it was prepared that the CJP will form a special committee to face matters in its absence.
He said that the beneficiaries of the 26th constitutional amendment are very nervous to leave issues in the hands of an interim CJP. “According to the current Constitution, Judge Syed Masoor Ali Shah will be the interim CJP. They fear that Judge Shah as an interim CJP can do anything that believes them problems.”
Judge Shah has worked as the CJP in functions twice in the recent past. A lawyer section is to question why Judge Shah supported the procedure, which is contrary to the Constitution. Perhaps he did not react as clause 5 of the procedure is directly related to him, a lawyer said.
