Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani. PHOTO: EXPRESS
ISLAMABAD:
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday witnessed a moment of joy when Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani made a witty reference to the 27th Constitutional Amendment while hearing a case related to the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII).
During the hearing, Justice Kayani commented that since the 27th Amendment was in place, the CII could also have taken the opportunity to expand its authority. The Council could have sent its proposals; maybe his powers would have been expanded too, he joked.
The court noted that it could decide the case within the current month, noting that after the passage of the 27th Amendment, even the court’s own jurisdiction in certain matters may no longer remain intact.
Justice Kayani asked the CII representative whether the body was merely advisory and who had approached it for an opinion on the case. He noted that any action by the court could mark a new trend in the country and emphasized that parliament has legislative power.
The court asked whether the CII could offer advice to anyone other than the legislature, the president or the provincial governor. The IIC representatives responded that only the president could answer that question, but since the position of president was vacant, they asked for more time.
