Fazl demands CJP’s resignation

PDM chief believes top judge’s resignation vital to restore public’s trust in judiciary

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) President Maulana Fazlur Rahman has launched a scathing attack against Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Atta Bandial, accusing him of dividing the Supreme Court with controversial decisions and demanding his resignation.

In a statement posted on his official Twitter account on Saturday, the head of the opposition alliance criticised the chief justice's alleged mishandling of the country's most prestigious institution, the Supreme Court (SC), which caused a crisis within the country and the state.

The Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief also argued that the only solution to this crisis was for Chief Justice Bandial to resign from his position.

Fazl also pointed out that parliament was the supreme institution of the country, and the chief justice's alleged misconduct had put this institution in a difficult position.

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He called on Chief Justice Bandial to resign immediately without any further delay to restore the public's trust in the judiciary.

The ongoing dispute between the federal government and Chief Justice Bandial seemingly escalated to an irreconcilable point, as the former had been pushing for the latter's resignation.

The demand came in light of what the government perceived as "controversial" decisions made by the chief justice, particularly his recent direction to the electoral body to hold elections in Punjab on May 14.

During a resolute news conference in which she called out the CJP and two other judges, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb on Friday declared that the position of CJ Bandial had become problematic, particularly after apex court’s Justice Athar Minallah's remarks in the Punjab polls case.

As such, she demanded the chief justice's immediate resignation.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif also accused the CJP of advancing the agenda of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), and likewise called for his resignation.