CJP details why Arshad Sharif case not heard by larger bench

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa has explained that the Arshad Sharif case was not fixed before a five-judge larger bench as it didn’t require any constitutional interpretation.

The CJP outlined the reason on Aug 1 while heading the meeting of the committee formed under the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023 to fix cases.

The meeting was held after Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, who was heading a three-judge bench, referred the case back to the committee on the grounds that a five-judge larger bench previously heard the case and it should be fixed before a bench with the same number of judges.

According to minutes of the meeting, the CJP pointed out that unless a case required interpretation of constitutional provisions, it need not be fixed before a five-judge bench and a regular bench can hear such cases.

Justices Shah and Munib Akhtar, who are the other two committee members, were of the view that the case was earlier heard by a five-judge bench. Therefore, a similar bench may be reconstituted.

As the two judges disagreed with the CJP’s reasons, the committee decided to fix the case before a five-judge bench comprising justices Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Ayesha A. Malik, Athar Minallah and Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi.

The committee also considered a July 30 letter written by ad hoc judges Sardar Tariq Masood and Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel in which they requested more cases to be fixed before them.

The two retired SC justices, who were recently appointed as ad hoc judges to dispose of pending cases, said only ten cases were fixed before them which were decided in 70 minutes. The committee decided that additional cases should be fixed before the ad hoc judges, for which the registrar has identified 1,100 old cases.

The committee also constituted Shariat Appellate Bench comprising the CJP, Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan, Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan and ulema members Dr Muhammad Khalid Masud and Dr Qibla Ayaz.

Published in Dawn, August 6th, 2024