Khokhar challenges 26th Amendment objections

ISLAMABAD:

Tehreek-e-Tahaffuz Ayeen-e-Pakistan (TTAP) Senior Vice President Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar on Thursday filed a chamber appeal challenging the Supreme Court registrar office's objections over petitions against the 26th Constitutional Amendment.

The 26th Constitutional Amendment, enacted on Oct 21, 2024, curtailed the Supreme Court's suo motu jurisdiction and transferred the authority of appointing the chief justice of Pakistan (CJP) to a Special Parliamentary Committee. Under the new arrangement, the committee may choose the CJP from among the three most senior judges of the apex court, instead of automatically elevating the senior-most.

At present, the Supreme Court is handling several petitions seeking the formation of a full court to deliberate on the issue, rather than the Constitutional Bench (CB) established in line with the 26th Amendment. The CB is scheduled to continue hearing the original appeals on Oct 7.

In his appeal, Khokhar has requested the apex court to declare the registrar office's Sept 19 decision void, arguing that cases related to constitutional amendments could only be heard by a full court, not a constitutional bench.

He noted that the orders of Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Munib Akhtar, referring the matter to a full court, were still intact. The appeal further contended that the registrar office's move to return the petitions violated past Supreme Court rulings and amounted to "shutting the doors of justice".