ISLAMABAD:
The federal government on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that following the enactment of the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO) (Amendment) Act, 2026, appeals against convictions and bail issues in NAB cases fall within the jurisdiction of the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC), rather than the high court.
A three-member bench, headed by Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and comprising Justice Musarrat Hilali and Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan, was examining whether appeals and bail petitions in NAB cases should be heard by the SC or the FCC in light of recent amendments to the accountability law.
During the proceedings, the federal government argued that under the amendment to the NAB law, appeals against high court rulings in NAB cases, including central appeals and bail issues, must be heard by the FCC. The NAB also supported the federal government’s position.
Attorney General of Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman argued that the SC no longer has jurisdiction in NAB cases and that appeals against convictions and bail issues would now be heard by the FCC.
“It is not possible for one part of a case to be heard by the SC and another part by the FCC,” he argued.
The attorney general maintained that while granting bail remained a judicial function based on examination of the record, the forum for hearing appeals in NAB cases had now changed.
He said the right to appeal in NAB cases was a fundamental right and had not been abolished but simply transferred to the FCC through the latest amendments.
Referring to Article 175F(2) of the Constitution, Usman argued that all cases pending before the SC that fell within the jurisdiction of the Constitutional Court would be automatically transferred to the FCC.
It held that the NAO (Amendment) Act was enacted in March 2026 and specifically provided that its provisions would be applied retrospectively from the date on which the original NAB Act came into force.
“As a result, all NAB cases are transferred to the FCC by operation of law,” he argued, adding that the amendment had changed the appellate forum.
Judge Mazhar asked whether the NAB cases had in fact been transferred to the FCC. The NAB lawyer responded that the cases had not yet been transferred. Justice Mazhar then asked whether the SC still retained the authority to grant bail in NAB cases.
NAB counsel argued that the amendments granted appellate jurisdiction to the FCC and that it would be inappropriate for bail petitions to be heard in one forum while appeals were heard in another.
He argued that both bail matters and appeals in NAB cases should be heard by the same court because, in many cases, courts look at the merits of the case while deciding bail petitions.
Representing one of the petitioners, advocate Ibadur Rehman Lodhi argued that the NAB amendments nowhere provided that bail petitions would also be heard by the FCC.
