Tag: Chief Justice

  • Bill tabled in Senate to increase number of Supreme Court judges to 21

    Bill tabled in Senate to increase number of Supreme Court judges to 21

    Senator Muhammad Abdul Qadir has introduced the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Bill in the Senate, proposing to increase the number of Supreme Court judges from 17 to 21.

    Lawmaker Qadir explained that the purpose of the amendment is to ensure quicker justice and to address the fifty-three thousand pending cases in the apex court. He emphasized that the amendment would significantly improve the judicial system’s efficiency.

    He also noted that billions of rupees in cases have remained unresolved due to the shortage of judges in the superior court and the lack of available time.

    The opposition, however, expressed concerns over the proposed amendment, arguing that it would favour the incumbent government and called it a “judiciary coup.”

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) parliamentary leader Barrister Ali Zafar advised the government to focus on reforming the lower judiciary rather than increasing the number of judges in the apex court.

    Law Minister Senator Azam Nazeer Tarar said, “Massive reforms are being introduced in the criminal procedure code, from registration of FIR to manner of arrest and discharge, and timelines in the material and sessions trial to the use of the modern device in the law of evidence,”

  • ‘Mahr has to be paid whenever demanded by the wife’: Chief Justice

    ‘Mahr has to be paid whenever demanded by the wife’: Chief Justice

    The Supreme Court has ruled that haq mahr must be paid by the husband whenever the wife demands it, not just in the event of divorce. Mahr is the mandatory payment or gift from the groom to the bride at the time of marriage. It is a fundamental part of an Islamic marriage contract and is considered the bride’s exclusive right, reports The Express Tribune.

    In a petition to the court, a husband had contended that since he had not divorced his wife, he was not liable to pay the mahr.

    Rejecting the contention, a three-member bench led by Chief Justice Pakistan Isa referred to a 2001 judgment in which the Supreme Court had held that mahr can be demanded even when a marriage continues and that the husband is under obligation to pay the amount agreed upon at the time of the wedding.

    Referring to that case, the bench lamented that the wife had to file a suit for recovery of her mahr and maintenance and the husband unnecessarily involved her in legal proceedings that reached the court after six-and-a-half years.

    Chief Justice Isa criticised lower courts that did not penalize the husband for filing unnecessary appeals. “If the man was fined for filing unnecessary appeals, it would not have taken too long to decide the case. Filing of unnecessary appeals is paralyzing the judicial system,” he observed.
    The CJP said that the courts should not hesitate to impose fines to end unnecessary litigation.

    The chief justice ordered Khalid Parvez, the petitioner, to pay a Rs100,000 fine, the cost of legal proceedings along with mahr to his wife Samina, and dismissed his appeal, reported Dunya News.

    “Mahr has to be paid whenever demanded by the wife,” said a three-page written order authored by Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa in a case related to non-payment of the money. The court also noted that mahr is an Islamic concept mentioned in the Holy Quran— Surah An-Nisa verse 4 and Surah Al-Baqrah verses 236-7. It is specifically recognized by the law of Pakistan in Section 2 of the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1962.

  • Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa nay Mercedes neelami pay lagga dee

    Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa nay Mercedes neelami pay lagga dee

    Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa, has ordered that two luxury vehicles, allocated for his use by both the federal and Punjab governments, should be auctioned, as per Geo News.

    The decision comes as Chief Justice Isa deems the allocation an “inappropriate splurge of scarce public resources.”

    The Supreme Court registrar communicated the Chief Justice’s decision through a letter addressed to the federal government, cabinet secretary and Punjab chief secretary.

    The letter revealed that in September 2020, the apex court purchased a new Mercedes Benz, 2996 CC sedan for the Chief Justice at the cost of Rs61 million.

    Furthermore, the Government of Punjab provided a brand new bullet-proof Toyota Land Cruiser with registration number LEG-S00 for the use of the Chief Justice of Pakistan.

    The vehicle is currently stationed at the Supreme Court Rest House in the Government Officers Residence (GOR), Lahore.

    The communication emphasized that, by established rules, every judge of the apex court is entitled to two vehicles.

    “Justice Isa has not used the said Mercedes sedan nor the Toyota Land Cruiser,” said the letter. It further stated that it is an “inappropriate splurge of scarce public resources to buy imported luxury vehicles for the use of constitutional and public office holders”.

    “Therefore, these vehicles may be collected and auctioned and the money realised from the sale be spent on much needed public transport,” said the letter.

    Justice Isa took oath as the 29th CJP in September of this year after his predecessor Umar Ata Bandial hung up his robes.

    Justice Isa’s tenure as the country’s chief justice, however, will be quite brief, as he is set to retire from the position on October 25, 2024.

    He took oath as the apex court’s judge on September 5, 2014.

  • Indonesia: Chief Justice dismissed over decision in favor of the President’s son

    Indonesia: Chief Justice dismissed over decision in favor of the President’s son

    A judicial panel in Indonesia has dismissed the Chief Justice of the country over allegations of conflict of interest. It was reported that Chief Justice Anwar Usman gave a verdict in favour of President Joko Widodo’s son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka.

    Last month, Chief Justice who happened to be the President’s relative, gave a ruling regarding the age limit of vice-presidential elections, a decision critics saw as favouring him to a great extent. The controversy led to an outrage resulting in his dismissal by the panel of judges in the top court.

    The judicial panel found him guilty of violating the ethical code of judges as he is the brother-in-law of the president and should have remained neutral but he could not recuse himself.

    The panel was asked to investigate the conduct of judges amid public outcry after they ruled that the minimum age requirement of 40 need not apply to election candidates who had previously held elected office. The ruling was made just days before the start of registration for the 2024 election. The 36-year-old, already serving as a mayor of Surakarta city, was able to register for the election of the vice president.

    The panel has decided that Justice Anwar can serve as one of the nine judges of the court but must not take part in any election-related cases in the future as those fall under a conflict of interest. The rest of the eight judges have also been reprimanded by the panel.

    Criticism against the decision stemmed from the public seeing the step as part of Widodo’s aim of forming a dynasty by appointing his son the the vice-president. He himself has completed two terms and has not backed any candidate formally for upcoming elections.

  • Lawyer fined by Qazi Faez Isa for ‘wasting’ court’s time

    Lawyer fined by Qazi Faez Isa for ‘wasting’ court’s time

    Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa imposed a fine on a lawyer on Thursday for what he considered a clear wastage of the court’s valuable time. According to reports, the Chief Justice levied a penalty of Rs5,000 on the lawyer for consuming the court’s time during proceedings related to a property case.

    Justice Isa pointed out that the attorney had failed to appropriately draw the court’s attention to pertinent documents, instead attempting to misguide the court. Expressing his disappointment with the petitioner’s legal representative, the Chief Justice remarked that their actions had undermined the court’s trust.

    He addressed the lawyer directly, saying, “The court has lost faith in you with this act of yours”.

    Chief Justice Isa further instructed the lawyer to donate the fine amount to a charity of their choice and provide the court with proof of the donation receipt. The case in question revolved around a property dispute, with court proceedings having extended over several weeks.

  • What is Practice and Procedure act 2023?

    What is Practice and Procedure act 2023?

    On March 29 and March 30, 2023, the National Assembly and Senate, respectively, adopted and enacted the (Practice and Procedure Bill) 2023. Without his signature, the President remitted the bill for review, but on April 10, 2023, the Joint Session of Parliament once more passed the Act after it had complied with all rules and procedures.

    According to the Act, each case, appeal, and subject before the Supreme Court will be heard by benches formed by a committee comprising of the Chief Justice and the two senior most judges.

    It further stated that any issue involving the use of original jurisdiction under Article 184, paragraph (3), shall be brought before the committee for consideration first.
    The committee must then assemble a bench of at least three Supreme Court justices, which may also include committee members, if it deems that the issue involves the enforcement of one or more fundamental rights.
    According to the Act, an appeal must be submitted within 30 days of the larger bench of the Supreme Court obtaining jurisdiction over it and its hearing date must be scheduled no later than 14 days after that. When submitting a review application, it also offers a party the flexibility to choose the lawyer of its choice.

  • Unprepared lawyers in live Supreme Court proceedings unleash Pakistani Twitter at its best

    Unprepared lawyers in live Supreme Court proceedings unleash Pakistani Twitter at its best

    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.

    Another user tweeted a meme what CJP Isa might have said to Advocate Khawaja Tariq Rahim.

    More tweets about lawyers and their arguments here:

    Do you agree with these tweets?

  • Supreme Court orders restoration of corruption cases against politicians

    Supreme Court orders restoration of corruption cases against politicians

    The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday struck down recent amendments made to the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO), 1999, during the tenure of the previous Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)-led government. A three-member SC bench headed by outgoing Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, and comprising of Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Ijazul Ahsan, conducted 53 hearings on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s petition against the changes made to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Ordinance under the National Accountability (Second Amendment) Act 2022.

    Today’s 2-1 majority verdict has resulted in the restoration of corruption cases against public office holders, which were closed down following the NAB amendments. The ruling specifically reinstated the NAB clause pertaining to the Service of Pakistan.

    In June 2022, former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan approached the top court to challenge the amendments to the NAB laws, contending that they will “virtually eliminate any white-collar crime committed by a public office holder”.

    On September 5, the SC reserved its verdict in the case. “My retirement is near, [we] will give a decision before retirement. We will soon announce a short and sweet verdict of the case,” said CJ Bandial.

    According to today’s SC verdict, the petition by PTI Chairman against NAB amendments was declared admissible by the majority decision, restoring all closed inquiries filed with the anti-corruption body. The top court has ordered restoring all graft cases worth less than Rs500 million that were closed down after the amendments.

    According to The Express Tribune, former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif was a major beneficiary of the amendments. Other beneficiaries include former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, former President Asif Ali Zardari, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Maryam Nawaz, Faryal Talpur, Ishaq Dar, Khawaja Asif, Khawaja Saad Rafiq, Rana Sanaullah, Javed Lateef, Makhdoom Khosro Bakhtiar, Amir Mehmood Kayani, Akram Durani , Saleem Mandiwala, Noor Alam Khan, Nawab Aslam Riasani, Dr Abdul Malik Baloch, Nawab Sanaullah Zehri, Barjees Tahir, Nawab Ali Wasan, Sharjeel Memon, Anwarul Haq Kakar, Liaqat Jatoi, Amir Maqam, Goram Bugti, Jaffer Mandokhel and G-B Governor Syed Mehdi Shah.

  • Dil toots: Chief Justice isn’t happy with criticism for saying ‘good to see you’ to IK

    Dil toots: Chief Justice isn’t happy with criticism for saying ‘good to see you’ to IK

    Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial has clarified that he uses the phrase “good to see you” to greet everyone.

    During a hearing of another case, the CJP had an interaction with lawyer Asghar Sabzwari on Tuesday afternoon. He initiated the exchange by saying, “I am pleased to see you as you have appeared in my court after a considerable period.”

    The remark came after the judge was heavily criticised by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), analysts and commentators for saying “good to see you” to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan when he appeared before the court after being arrested.

    Bandial then said that he says “good to see you” to everyone, not just to Imran Khan. He said that he had faced a lot of criticism for using the phrase. Justice Bandial said he holds a deep respect for everyone, adding that “etiquette and manners” are necessary for everyone.

    PML-N Senior Vice-President Maryam Nawaz, however, remained unimpressed with the Chief Justice’s explanation. Addressing Justice Bandial in a tweet, she asked if he says ‘good to see you’ to everyone who has stolen billions.

    She went on to ask, “Do you send everyone to rest houses,” adding another question about whether the Chief Justice allows every suspect to meet friends in the guest house as he did for Imran Khan.

    Last week, when Imran Khan appeared before Supreme Court to get relief against his arrest, the CJP said “good to see you”. His comment became a point of controversy with many arguing that special treatment was given to Khan.

     

  • Govt demands resignation from Chief Justice Bandial

    Govt demands resignation from Chief Justice Bandial

    Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb, in a press conference on Friday, demanded Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial’s resignation after Justice Athar Minallah’s hard-hitting note that said that the suo motu case of the delay in holding polls in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab was dismissed by 4-3.

    Calling the CJP “controversial”, Aurangzeb stated that when the court’s proceedings become controversial with judges of the top court refusing to accept the judgement, how will the people accept the verdict.

    “Justice Minallah’s note is a question mark,” she said.

    Without naming Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, the minister said that it is not acceptable for the government that a breacher of the constitution is facilitated by the judiciary.

    She added that parliament will decide about elections, not Imran Khan.

    It is pertinent to mention that CJP Bandial is set to retire by September this year, after which Justice Qazi Faez Isa will become the new chief justice.