SC to take up ex-IHC judge’s petition on Sept 24

Former judge had targeted country’s top spy agency and accused it of manipulating judicial proceedings

ISLAMABAD:

The Supreme Court will take up former Islamabad High Court (IHC) judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui’s petition on September 24 against his removal by the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC).

A five-member larger bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Umar Ata Bandial and comprising Sardar Tariq Masood, Justice Faisal Arab, Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel, will hear the constitutional petition seeking to set aside a report/opinion of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) and notification issued by the Ministry of Law and Justice on October 11, 2018.

President Arif Alvi had removed Justice Siddiqui as judge of the IHC on the recommendation of the SJC.

The president had taken the decision under Article 209(5) on the SJC recommendation under Article 209(6) read with Article 48(1) of the Constitution, a notification issued by the Ministry of Law and Justice stated.

The council unanimously opined that while delivering a speech before the District Bar Association in Rawalpindi on July 21, 2018, Justice Siddiqui had displayed a conduct unbecoming of a high court judge.

This was the opinion of the five members of the SJC, led by the then chief justice Mian Saqib Nisar.

Other judges on the panel at that time included Justice (retd) Asif Saeed Khosa, Justice Gulzar Ahmad, the current chief justice of Pakistan, the then Lahore High Court Chief Justice Yawar Ali and the then chief justice of the Sindh High Court Justice Ahmed Ali Sheikh.

Justice SIddiqui in his speech at the Rawalpindi District Bar Association on July 21, 2018 targeted the country’s top spy agency and accused it of manipulating the judicial proceedings. In March, the same bench took up the petition.

However, the case was adjourned until issuance of judgment in Justice Qazi Faez Isa case.

Now, Hamid Khan will appear on behalf of the former LHC judge.

In his petition, Siddiqui contended that he had been sacked without a proper inquiry to prove the claims he made during his controversial speech at the Rawalpindi Bar Association.

Challenging his removal, Siddiqui raised serious allegations of “bias” against the former CJP, who was also the SJC chairman.

In the 30-page petition, the former judge explained the context in which he was compelled to address the bar association and utter remarks about alleged involvement of certain officers from the executive organ of the state in affairs of the judiciary and alleged manipulation in formation of benches.

“The remarks made by the petitioner [Siddiqui] were an honest attempt demanded by his conscience to counter the challenges posed to the independence of the judiciary,” the petition argued.

In the petition, Siddiqui recalled how he had issued orders on June 29 and August 18 to clear roads and a green belt outside the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) headquarters.

Consequently, he added, a senior official of the ISI — named in the petition — visited him at his residence and asked him to review the decision and when he refused, expressed annoyance.

Subsequently, the petition said, another high-ranking official of the ISI — also named in the petition — approached the former judge at his residence on June 29 to apologise the conduct of his subordinate and suggested some guidance to protect the prestige of the institution by modifying the orders.