IHC questions CJ's case transfer authority

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday questioned whether the chief justice has the authority to transfer a case from one bench to another without the consent of the concerned judge.

Justice Sardar Ijaz Ishaq Khan made the remarks while hearing a contempt of court petition against Deputy Registrar Judicial Sultan Mehmood for allegedly altering the bench in a contempt case against the Adiala jail superintendent, who had denied Mashal Yousufzai a meeting with PTI founder Imran Khan.

In response to a court notice, the deputy registrar appeared before the bench. During proceedings, Justice Ijaz asked if there was any legal precedent where a case was transferred without the concerned judge's approval.

The deputy registrar presented a past case as reference, but the judge pointed out that in that instance, the chief justice had been part of the original bench and had simply added two more judges. "The real question is whether the CJ can unilaterally reassign a case," Justice Ijaz observed. Addressing the registrar, the judge acknowledged his constraints and said he did not wish to penalize him but urged him to speak the truth.