\u00a0Supreme Court’s Justice Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Sardar Tariq Masood said Thursday that Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial undermined the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) by refusing to accept its decision on the elevation of judges.
\nReacting to the speech of the CJP delivered during a full court reference on the eve of the new judicial year of the top court, Justices Isa and Masood noted that although the CJP had said that constitutional institutions should not be undermined, violated or attacked, he himself had undermined the JCP by refusing to accept its decision.
\n\u201cIncidentally, the undersigned have been in a minority in a number of other meetings of the JCP yet never once delivered a public address rebuking or casting aspersions on any member of the JCP,\u201d the judges said.
\nThey said that all the members of the JCP, including its chairman, are equal, adding the only additional responsibility of the CJP is for him to also act as its chairman.
\n\u201cThe constitution stipulates that the JCP by majority of its total membership shall nominate judges,\u201d they said, adding that the JCP in its meeting on July 28, had not approved the five candidates proposed by the chairman.
\nThe judges said that it is also questionable whether they should commend themselves for the number of cases decided when more than a third of the Supreme Court lies vacant.
\n\u201cWe have repeatedly called upon the chairman of the JCP to convene a meeting of the JCP (both before and after the notified summer vacation) to enable making of nominations to the Supreme Court,\u201d Justice Isa and Justice Masood said.
\n\u201cTo stress the urgency, we had stated that not filling the vacancies is reckless disregard of a constitutional duty but all to no avail.
\n\u201cThe Supreme Court cannot be placed in suspended animation till such time that members, to use the words of the CJP, support the candidates proposed by the chairman,” they said.
\n\u201cWe were seated on the right and left of the CJP as he read out his address,\u201d the judges said, adding that to maintain the decorum of the ceremony, they had remained quiet.
\nHowever, since the CJP\u2019s address was widely reported in the media, it has compelled them to clarify, lest their silence be misconstrued as consent.
\nBoth justices addressed their joint letter to the CJP, Justice Ijazul Ahsan (JCP member), Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah (JCP member), Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmany (JCP member), Federal Minister for Law and Justice and JCP member Azam Nazeer Tarar, Attorney-General for Pakistan Ashtar Ausaf Ali, and Akhtar Hussain, representative of Pakistan Bar Council, JCP member and representative of Supreme Court Bar Association.
\n\u201cWe have always endeavoured to avoid unnecessary controversy and present a united face of the institution of the Supreme Court to the nation. However, the address of the Chief Justice of Pakistan at the opening ceremony of the New Judicial Year 2022-2023 took us aback and left us dismayed,” they told the JCP members.
\nCJP ‘said much more’They noted that the object of the ceremony \u2014 as stated by the CJP \u2014was to identify the top court’s priorities and set its vision for the coming judicial year, but the “CJP said much more”.
\nHe sought to justify the decisions of the Supreme Court, respond to criticism of its judgments, and unilaterally speak on behalf of the Supreme Court, they said.
\nThey said that the Supreme Court does not comprise the CJP alone, it includes all the judges, adding that the CJP commenting on pending cases was disconcerting.
\n\u201cHe also made uncalled for and disparaging remarks about the Supreme Court Bar Association and its current and several past office-bearers, accusing them of political partisanship because they had requested that the full court be constituted to hear the cited case.\u201d
\nThe judges said that the Constitution requires the Supreme Court to give decisions but what was most inappropriate, and unreasonable, was to mention the working and decisions of the JCP.
\nThey added that JCP is a separate and independent body under the Constitution, adding that the CJP said the candidates proposed by the chairman of the JCP were not approved and blamed the representatives of the federal government \u2014 the law minister and the attorney-general \u2014 and also expressed his displeasure.
\n\u201cUnder no circumstances should the chairman of the JCP say what was said\u201d, the judges said.
\nThey said that the CJP is the chairman of the JCP, therefore, he, more than anyone else, must abide by its decisions.
\nIt did not behove the CJP to attack its members and to do so publicly only because they did not support his candidates, they said.
\n\u201cWhat the CJP said was also contrary to the record\u201d, Justice Isa and Justice Masood said, adding that it is not correct that his candidates were supported by four members of the JCP, which the (unauthorised) release of the audio recording of the meeting confirms.
\nThe judges maintained that Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmany also did not support all his candidates.
\nSimilarly, Justice Isa and Justice Masood said that it was further incorrect to state that \u2018any decision of the Supreme Court shall, to the extent that it decides a question of law or is based upon or enunciates a principle of law, be binding on all other courts in Pakistan.\u2019
\n\u201cIt does not envisage the said meeting as a pre-scheduled meeting, and that it was adjourned,\u201d they said, adding that when the chairman did not succeed in achieving his objective, he took the majority decision of the JCP as a personal affront and walked out of the meeting.
\nJustice Isa and Justice Masood stressed that a copy of their letter be issued to the acting registrar of the Supreme Court and acting secretary of the JCP, who should release this letter and its Urdu translation to the media since it pertains to the CJP\u2019s address which was widely reported in the media.
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