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The legal team of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has said that the change of the judge hearing the Zeba Chaudhry case against Imran Khan is quite shocking for the former prime minister.
“The PTI chairman was shocked and worried at the change of the judge hearing the Judge Zeba Chaudhry case,” said one of the PTI chief’s legal counsels, Salman Safdar, in a media talk outside the Attock jail after meeting his client.
Justice Malik Aman should not have been changed at this critical time, the lawyer said, as he was going to announce the decision soon.
Salman Safdar also said that the former prime minister apologised to Judge Zeba Chaudhry in her court for passing remarks against her in a public rally.
In August last year, Imran Khan was booked under the Anti-Terrorism Act for threatening additional sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhry and other police officers of the Islamabad police in a public gathering.
In a significant development in the lead-up to general elections, PPP leader Asif Ali Zardari met with PML-Q president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain at the latter’s residence on Thursday, hours after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announced the last week of January as the election date. Election strategies including the possibility of forming an alliance and coordinated seat allocations in Punjab were discussed in the meeting.
The 40-minute meeting focused on the current political landscape of Pakistan with Zardari also inquiring about Sujaat’s health. While official details of their discussions were not disclosed, PPP’s central media cell took to X (former Twitter) to confirm the meeting, stating that Mr. Zardari had discussed the prevailing political situation with PML-Q President Shujaat Hussain.
As per the empowerment given to Zardari by the PPP executive committee to meet top political leaders to secure seat adjustments in Punjab, he has strategically positioned himself in Lahore to spearhead his efforts.
On the other hand, PMLN President Shehbaz Sharif and Chief Organizer Maryam Nawaz will meet party leader Nawaz Sharif in London to discuss the changing political situation and to formulate election strategies.
Sources have told Dawn that PPP is considering seat adjustments not only with PML-N and PML-Q but also with PTI, as hinted at by its second-tier leadership. While senior PML-N leaders have maintained silence on the possibility of an alliance with PPP, lower-ranking leaders have expressed their opposition, arguing that the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) was created with the sole purpose of removing Imran Khan from power and completing the remainder of the previous government’s term.
Shujaat also suggested his former coalition allies, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), to avoid confrontations that he believes are detrimental to the country’s interests.
In response to Shujaat’s call for unity and harmony, Zardari asserted that his party had not contributed to any actions that could exacerbate political divisions. Zardari went on to emphasize that his party’s discourse was firmly anchored in constitutional principles and the ground realities of Pakistan, with no intentions of provoking confrontations with any political entities. Zardari further underscored the detrimental impact of escalating rhetoric and confrontations on the stability of the country.
Chaudhry Shujaa also conveyed his intention to engage with Nawaz Sharif, the supreme leader of the PML-N, to emphasize the need to avert unnecessary political hostilities.
Thursday’s meeting saw the presence of former federal minister Chaudhry Salik Hussain and PML-Q Punjab President Chaudhry Shafay Hussain. At this crucial juncture of alliance exploration, PPP General Secretary Nayyer Hussain Bukhari firmly announced that the party had no intentions of entering into electoral alliances with any other party.
Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) has announced the schedule of a sit-in in Lahore to protest against spiralling inflation in the country, ARY News has reported.
According to the details, the JI sit-in will start today (September 21), with party workers gathering in front of the Governor House on Mall Road, Lahore.
JI Ameer Sirajul Haq and senior leaders, including Liaquat Baloch, Ameerul Azeem, and other provincial leaders, will address protesters and party workers.
Earlier, JI had staged a sit-in against high electricity bills and skyrocketing inflation.
The secretary general of JI Ameerul Azeem headed the committee meeting of the party to finalise the schedule of sit-ins and protests against inflation.
It should also be remembered that the caretaker government increased petrol price by Rs58 per litre and diesel price by Rs56 per litre within a month.
Arbab Ghulam Muhammad Kasi, a senior leader of the Awami National Party (ANP), was found dead on Tuesday in the Kuchlak area of Balochistan.
The SHO of the new Kuchlak police station has said that the body of the senior leader was found in the village of Sheikh Jamal Atuzai in the Kuchlak area. Official authorities have taken custody of the body.
According to the initial report, a gunshot wound on the right temple is visible, while a bullet casing was also found at the crime scene.
Police and other official authorities are still investigating whether the incident was murder or suicide.
The body of the ANP leader has been transferred to Quetta Civil Hospital for a post-mortem.
Syrus Qazi, foreign secretary, has said that it’s not surprising for Pakistan that the Indian government has been involved in the killing of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia, Canada, in June this year.
The statement of the foreign secretary came during a media briefing at the Pakistan mission in the UN on Wednesday, as Syrus Qazi is on a five-day visit with caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar to the US to attend the 78th UNGA session.
“India’s terrorism in Canada is not a matter of surprise for Pakistan,” the top diplomat remarked.
The foreign secretary said that the Canadian PM’s allegations are not unusual for Pakistan, as Pakistan had arrested serving Indian spy Kulbhushan Yadav from Balochistan in March 2016.
The Indian spy was later sentenced to death as he was the mastermind of multiple terror attacks all over the country.
On Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau revealed in an assembly session that the Indian government played a role in the killing of Sikh Leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
“Over the past number of weeks, Canadian security agencies have been actively pursuing credible allegations of a potential link between agents of the government of India and the killing of a Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar,” Trudeau said, addressing the House of Commons about an “extremely serious matter,” after informing the opposition party leaders.
The federal interim government has filed a review appeal against the Supreme Court’s decision on the Review of Judgment Act on Monday, asking the apex court Supreme Court to revise the decision.
The petition contends that Article 142 empowers the Parliament to enact such legislation, the judicial decision being an encroachment on the powers of the legislature.
It should be noted that the Supreme Court had annulled the (Review of Judgment and Orders) Act on August 11.
“The Supreme Court (Review of Judgments and Orders) Act 2023 is ultra vires the Constitution being beyond the legislative competence of parliament,” declared a three-member bench led by former chief justice Umar Ata Bandial and comprising Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Munib Akhtar. Senior lawyers had voiced severe concerns regarding the verdict’s timing.
Today, for the first time in Pakistan’s history, proceedings of the full bench in the Supreme Court were broadcast on PTV. Most people were confused about who was who as they saw the 15 judges on screen for the first time.
If you’re not familiar with them, here is a short intro to each of the 15 judges.
1 Mr. Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah
Formerly the 45th Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court, Mr Ali Shah has been serving as a justice at the Supreme Court since 2018. He was born in Peshawar and educated at Aitchison College, University of the Punjab and then Downing College, Cambridge.
2 Mr. Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi
Mr Hasan Azhar Rizvi has been serving as a judge at the Supreme Court of Pakistan since November 2022, prior to which he was a Justice of the Sindh High Court from Febuary 2010 to November 2022.
3 Mr. Justice Sardar Tariq Masood
Mr Justice Sardar Tariq Masood has been serving as a justice at the Supreme Court of Pakistan since November 2015. He began practicing law in the Rawalpindi district in 1985 and became an Advocate of the Supreme Court in 2008.
4 Mrs. Justice Ayesha A. Malik
At the age of 55, Mrs Ayesha Malik made history by becoming the first female Supreme Court judge, a victory that was celebrated by all women in Pakistan. In 2021, she outlawed the deeply misogynist virginity test which was used on survivors of rape and sexual abuse. She earned her Bachelors of Commerce from Government College of Commerce and Economics, then received her law degree from Pakistan College of Law, and her LL.M from Harvard Law School.
5 Mr. Justice Amin-Ud-Din Khan
Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan was sworn in as a Supreme Court judge in 2019. He began practicing in lower courts in 1985 after which he was issued a license. He was appointed as an Advocate of the Lahore High Court in 1987, and later of the Supreme Court in 2001.
6 Mr. Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail
Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail was elevated to the Supreme Court of Pakistan as a Judge on August 2021. He completed his Matriculation from the Federal Government High School, Quetta Cantonment, and then his FSc. from Government Science College, Quetta. Mr Mandokhail completed his Masters in Political Science and Economics from the University of Balochistan, and later did his LLB from University Law College Quetta in 1987.
7 Mr. Justice Munib Akhtar
Justice Munib Akhtar took oath as a Supreme Court judge in 2018. He is the son-in-law of the former law minister Khalid Anwar.
8 Mr. Justice Ijaz Ul Ahsan
Justice Ijaz Ul Ahsan was appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in 2016. He had earlier been appointed the Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court in 2015. He recieved his early education in Lahore and then graduated in 1979 from Forman Christian College with a merit scholarship.
9 Mr. Justice Athar Minallah
Justice Athar Minallah was appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in November 2022. Prior to this, he served as the 5th Chief Justice of the Islamabad High Court from 2018 till 2022.
10 Mr. Justice Shahid Waheed
Justice Shahid Waheed completed his graduation from Government College Lahore in 1986, after which he did his LL.B from the University Of Punjab in 1989. He was elevated as a judge of the Lahore High Court on March 2012, and appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in 2022.
11 Mr. Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi
Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi was appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in March 2020, and has been a practicing Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and at the High Courts since 2001 and 1988.
12 Mr. Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar
Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar was appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in August 2021. Before his tenure in the apex court, he became a judge of the Sindh High Court in February 2010. Born in Karachi, he completed his graduation in Commerce and later passed his LL.B examination in 1990.
13 Mr Justice Qazi Faez Isa
Mr. Justice Qazi Faez Isa was appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in September 2014, and was elevated to the position of Chief Justice on Sunday. He completed his early education from Karachi, then went on to earn a Bachelors in Law from London, where he completed his Bar Professional examination at the Inns of Court School of Law.
14 Mr. Justice Yahya Afridi
Justice Yahya Afridi was elevated as a judge of the Supreme Court in June 2018, and was previously appointed as the Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court in December 2016.
15 Ms. Justice Mussarat Hilali
Justice Mussarat Hilali became the first woman Chief Justice to be appointed at the Peshawar High Court in March 2023, and later became the second female judge to be appointed at the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar, the interim Prime Minister, has urged his Afghan counterpart in a letter to cooperate in order to accomplish shared objectives, The News reported on Monday.
The letter from PM Kakar to Mullah Muhammad Hasan Akhund, the acting Prime Minister of Afghanistan, comes as tensions between the two nations are rising as a result of an increase in cross-border terror incidents.
In his letter, PM Kakar said: “Pakistan has close fraternal relations with Afghanistan, as we are neighbours and brothers. Pakistan-Afghanistan relations are rooted in religion, culture, and history.”
The Premier declared that Kabul and Islamabad will continue to work together to strengthen bilateral, political, security, and economic ties.
Earlier, Pakistan accused the Afghanistan government of misusing the transit trade agreement.
“It is important for our customs authorities to ensure that any border trade that takes place complies with the understandings and agreements that exist between Pakistan and Afghanistan and that such commercial activities do not contravene Pakistani laws,” the Foreign Office had said.
The live transmission of the Supreme Court’s (SC) full bench led by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qaez Faez Isa on Monday has led to social media blitz of memes.
Delighted viewers got to see a Supreme Court hearing for the first time, and they did not hold back on jokes.
Lawyers, particularly Khawaja Tariq Rahim, came under particular scrutiny, and the internet was not particularly impressed with his arguments, or lack thereof.
We have gathered the best of the internet’s comments on proceedings, judges’ remarks and lawyers’ arguments.
One user used a meme about what lawyers think they do, what public thinks lawyers do and what lawyers actually do.
کیا آپ بھی کچھ نیوز چینلز پر چلنے والے ٹکرز اور بلاوجہ کی بریکنگ نیوز سن سن کر خواجہ طارق رحیم کو ایک منجھا ہوا اور بہت ہی اعلٰی پائے کا وکیل سمجھتے تھے؟ آج کی کاروائی کے بعد میری تو غلط فہمی دور ہو گئی ہے۔
Haha hum khayal judges tout petitioner was so bad and unprepared, Munib Akhtar and Ijal ul Ahsan have had to come themselves to rescue him and give arguments on his behalf
Lawyers not exactly covering themselves in glory in #SupremeCourtofpakistan live proceedings. Not prepared, not articulate, not persuasive. Is this the norm or exception?
This live broadcast of the Supreme Court full court hearing is also a great expose of the mediocrity rampant in the legal profession garbed in ‘respectable’ suits. They take millions for such buffoonish and amateurish arguments.
On Sunday, Justice Qazi Faez Isa took the oath of office to become the 29th Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP). Before the swearing-in began, Justice Faiz Isa also called his wife, Mrs. Sarina Isa, to the stage, where she remained until the end of the oath.
After taking the oath, Qazi Faez Isa took multiple steps that have not been taken before.
For the first time in judicial history, a woman has been appointed registrar of the Supreme Court when Lahore district and session judge Jazeela Aslam was appointed on the post.
Jazeela Aslam also served as a session judge in Kasur and Sialkot.
Jazeela Aslam completed her BA from Kinnard College Lahore and her LLB from Punjab University. She also passed the competitive judiciary exam on second-place in all of Punjab.
Secondly, CJP Faez Isa also called a full court meeting on Monday to discuss several issues, like the live telecast of the court proceeding. On the other hand, former CJP Umar Atta Bandial didn’t hold a full court meeting in his whole tenure as CJP.
It can also be seen for the first time in the country’s judicial history that the Supreme Court’s full court, comprising all 15 judges, will hear a set of petitions challenging the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023, and the hearing will be live on TV.
The CJP Faez Isa reached the apex court today in his personal car without any protocol and said to the staff of the court that “people come to the Supreme Court to solve their problems. Treat visitors like guests.”
