‘Most unfortunate’: PM flays President for returning SC bill

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday criticised President Arif Alvi for returning the Supreme Court bill – which aims to curtail the powers of the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) to take suo motu notice and constitute benches on his own – to Parliament after it was passed by the National Assembly, calling it "most unfortunate."

The federal cabinet had requested that the president immediately sign the bill, in an effort to resolve the country's constitutional and political crisis.

The bill, which has already been approved by the National Assembly and Senate, was passed in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s decision to order elections in Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa within 90 days of their dissolution, among other such decisions.

Read more: President Alvi returns bill limiting CJP's powers to parliament

However, President Alvi, earlier in the day, returned the bill to parliament for "reconsideration".

"President Alvi returning the Supreme Court Bill duly passed by parliament is most unfortunate," Shehbaz said on his official Twitter handle.

"Through his conduct, he has belittled the august Office by acting as a worker of the PTI, one who is beholden to Imran Niazi more than the Constitution & demands of his Office."

According to a press release from the president’s secretariat, President Alvi returned the bill “as per the provisions of the Article 75 of the Constitution”, adding that “the bill prima-facie travels beyond the competence of the Parliament and can be assailed as a colourable legislation”.

“The president said that he thought it fit and proper to return the Bill, in accordance with the Constitution, with the request for reconsideration in order to meet the scrutiny about its validity (if assailed in the Court of Law)”.

The president, after “an in-depth consideration” of the bill, listed aspects that required consideration “to provide for the practice and procedure of the Supreme Court of Pakistan”.