Bahria town case: Orders for resuming hearing illegal, says Aitzaz

ISLAMABAD:

Senior lawyer Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan has termed the order of resuming the hearing of the Bahria Town case “illegal and unconstitutional”.

Ahsan submitted an application in the Supreme Court pleading that a general adjournment was granted in the case, following which he left the country.

He said a bench headed by Justice Jawwad S Khawaja, who was sworn in as the chief justice of Pakistan on Monday, had issued the order for resuming the hearing of the case.

Ahsan said the directive of resuming the hearing of the case during the general adjournment was “unconstitutional and illegal”.

He pleaded that it was a violation of Article 10-A of the Constitution and the honourable bench did not have the authority to hear the case in his absence.

He also pleaded that Justice Khawaja had instructed to present the case before the bench during the hearing of another case, adding that only the then chief justice enjoyed such authority.

Ahsan said that it was a matter of disappointment that Justice Khawaja had the hearing of the case fixed. “What status or capability does this other bench hold that it decided to review the orders of the first bench?”

The senior lawyer said in his petition that in case a judge expresses unusual interest in the hearing of any particular case, it is considered non-professional and he is removed from the case.

He said that during his bar career spanning half a century, he had never witnessed the orders of the chief justice for deferment of a case being ignored in such an authoritative manner.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 18^th, 2015.