Govt threatens SC judges with references

The country’s top security czar has said the incumbent coalition government may file references against the three Supreme Court judges including Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial who are hearing a plea against postponement of polls in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P).

“The possibility of filing references against the judges cannot be ruled out,” said Federal Minister for Interior Rana Sanaullah on Saturday while talking to Express News’ anchor Rehman Azhar.

“We respect the three judges [who are part of the bench] in their individual capacity but have serious reservations about their verdicts. We may file references [against them],” Sanaullah added.

CJP Umar Ata Bandial is leading the bench that is hearing the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) plea against the Election Commission of Pakistan’s March 22 notification, announcing postponement of elections in Punjab, earlier scheduled for April 30.

Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Munib Akhtar are also part of the bench.

The bench, originally comprising 5 members, was reduced to a three-judge bench after two members of the bench – Justice Aminuddin Khan and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail--recused themselves from hearing the case respectively on March 30 and March 31.

The CJP, however, rejected the coalition government’s plea to form a full bench to hear the plea, prompting a strong reaction from ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader Nawaz Sharif, who on Friday said his party would not accept the decision of the existing bench.

The parties of the ruling coalition on Saturday held a conference in which they reiterated their demand to form a full bench, warning that they would not accept the decision of the incumbent bench.

Talking with reference to the coalition parties’ conference, Sanaullah said heads of all coalition parties including Pakistan Peoples Party Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari attended the meeting--the latter via video link--and agreed that proceeding of the case by the three judge bench was illegal and unconstitutional.

“There is a complete agreement among the coalition parties and not a single person raised any objection. The entire leadership of the PPP is on board with the PML-N. We are not going to become part of the proceedings.”

The interior minister claimed that the case at hand did not invite suo motu jurisdictions. “We will request the court to quash the proceedings as the matter has been resolved [by an earlier SC bench] by a vote of 4 to 3.”

Sanaullah was referring to the 9-judge bench that CJP Bandial formed in February to hear the petitions filed under Article 184 (3) of the Constitution against delay in announcement of polls in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) provinces.

Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi had recused themselves when the ruling party raised questions about their integrity while Justice Yahya Afridi and Justice Athar Minallah had disassociated themselves from the proceedings after questioning maintainability of the petitions.

Later on March 1, a five-judge larger bench by a vote of 3 to 2 ruled that the president and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) should announce polls in Punjab after mutual consultation.

The federal government had, however, claimed that the PTI’s election delay petition was actually rejected by a vote of 4-3, a view also shared  by some SC judges.