- Justice Mansoor Ali Shah questions the authority of the committee of judges.
- Hamid Khan defends the powers of the practice and procedure committee.
- Nazar Abbas files his response, seeking withdrawal of notification.
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Thursday reserved its judgment in the contempt case against Additional Registrar Nazar Abbas in the Bench Powers case.
A two-member bench of the Supreme Court heard the contempt of court case against the additional registrar for not scheduling the case for hearing.
The issue in question relates to the erroneous disposal of cases, which included a challenge to the Custom Vires Act, 1969, by Additional Registrar (Judicial) Nazar Abbas, who has been removed from his post, who fixed errors of cases intended for Supreme Court constitutional bench cases instead of a normal one.
The cases were fixed before a regular bench of three judges which were heard on January 13, 2025, where, apart from the merit of the case, the constitutionality of Subsection 2 of Section 11A of the Customs Act was challenged.
The bank’s jurisdiction was disputed and the cases were subsequently adjourned until January 16.
Realizing the serious lapse on their part, the judicial branch through a note approached the regular committee under Section 2(1) of the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023.
Considering the serious nature of the lapse, the committee was convened on January 17 under the chairmanship of the President of Pakistan (CJP). The committee noted that Clause 3 of Article 191a of the Constitution read with Clause 5 of Article 191a of the Constitution expressly grants such jurisdiction in the constitutional bench and no other.
The Committee, therefore, withdrew these cases from the regular bench and directed that the same be placed before the Constitutional Banking Committee constituted under Article 191A of the Constitution for Refixation.
The issue has also led to Justice Shah, Justice Ayesha A Malik and Justice Aqeel writing a letter to CJP Yahya Afridi, Chief Constitutional Judge Amin-ud-Din Khan on the issue regarding formation of benches .
Today’s hearing
During the proceedings, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah questioned whether the committee of judges could reverse a court order.
Amicus curiae Hamid Khan said an administrative order could not override a court order. Justice Shah further emphasized that the case before the bench concerns whether the committee of judges could withdraw the case in light of a court order and whether the full court could review such decision.
Justice Aqeel Abbasi noted that there seems to be confusion over the matter, as in the past, formation of banks was the prerogative of the SC, but some powers of the court have been curtailed, raising questions about the 26th Constitutional Amendment.
Justice Shah also asked if any country allows the executive to form banks instead of the judiciary, to which Hamid replied that this does not happen anywhere.
Justice Shah said Article 191a would allow the creation of a judicial commission for constitutional benches, and Justice Abbasi raised concerns about potential overlap in this regard.
Hamid explained that Parliament could legislate to determine the jurisdiction of courts other than the SC, but could not reduce the powers of the apex court.
Hamid also said that the practice and procedure committee has the authority to assign cases to the constitutional bench. Justice Shah asked whether the committee could ignore a court order, referring to the Raja Amir case where a full bench was constituted.
Justice Shah also raised questions about the practice and procedure committee’s powers under Article 2A, asking whether it could set aside court orders.
Hamid responded that no situation will arise when the Practice and Procedure Committee ignores a Court Order.
Meanwhile, Attorney General of Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan said that the current bench has not been properly constituted for contempt of court case.
As per the Apex court rules, the Chief Justice will take the decision regarding formation of a bench for contempt of court cases.
The attorney general further clarified that the current bench does not have the authority to hear the contempt of court case. He explained that this matter is under the domain of civil or criminal contempt. The full procedure for contempt of court is outlined, and it is within the authority of the Chief Justice to oversee it.
The SC, after hearing the arguments, reserved judgment in the contempt of court case, which will be announced later.
Separately, sources confirmed that the SC Additional Registrar filed a reply to the show cause notice in the court, seeking its withdrawal and stating that there was no disobedience of the court order.
He clarified that the issue of bench formation was sent to the Practice and Procedure Committee for review.
