New SC law ‘will not benefit’ Nawaz in his litigation

Law Minister Azam Nazir Tarar on Monday said that Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Quaid Nawaz Sharif would not benefit from the Supreme Court (Review of Judgments and Orders) Act 2023, which became a law earlier in the day.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Tarar stressed that this law was not enacted for a single person and that it was not related to the cases of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, whose appeals were pending in the courts.

The Supreme Court (Review of Judgments and Orders) Act 2023 Bill was passed by the National Assembly on April 14 and by the Senate on May 5. President Dr Arif Alvi gave his assent to the bill on Monday, which came as a surprise to many.

Tarar said that this legislation would not benefit Nawaz in his current litigation but he could benefit from the previous bill, The Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act, on which a stay order on its enactment was issued by the top court.

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The Supreme Court (Review of Judgments and Orders) Act 2023 Bill was introduced by National Assembly member Shaza Fatima as a private members bill. The MNA also belongs to the PML-N.

The act allows the right to appeal against the Supreme Court’s decisions in suo motu cases. It says that a review appeal could be filed within 60 days of the approval of the bill.

The act says that the number of judges on the bench hearing the review appeal will be greater than the number of judges who sat on the bench that gave the original decision, while the appellant had the right to appoint the lawyer of his choice.

Further, the judges who gave the decision in the suo motu case, would not be part of the bench for the hearing of the review appeal. The new act would also apply to the decisions given in the past under Section 184(3) of the Constitution.