Tag: CJP

  • CJ Bandial admits Supreme Court can’t force govt into negotiations on election delay

    Chief Justice of Pakistan, Umar Ata Bandial has admitted on Thursday that the Supreme Court cannot force the government to hold negotiations with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on the matter of delay in polls in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Punjab.

    The three member bench, comprising of Justices Bandial, Ijazul Ahsan and Munib Akhtar, barely heard the case for an hour, calling for a sudden adjournment with the Chief Justice stating that a detailed order will be issued later.

    During last week’s hearing, the apex court had told political parties to hold dialogue on April 26 and report to the court. The coalition-led federal government, however, has held no dialogue and refused to accept the April 4 verdict, calling into question the legality of the bench.

  • Audio leak: Is Saqib Nisar discussing contempt of court case against Shehbaz Sharif?

    Audio leak: Is Saqib Nisar discussing contempt of court case against Shehbaz Sharif?

    The season of audio leaks continues as a new one has hit the interwebs on Tuesday, involving an alleged conversation between Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawyer Khawaja Tariq Rahim and former Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar.

    The former head of the apex court can be heard speaking about the judgement of a seven-member bench on a “suo moto” notice taken by the apex court in 2010 to Rahim and asking him to look into the matter.

    Moreover, Nisar also refers to the ouster of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Sardar Tanveer Ilyas as the Azad Jammu and Kashmir prime minister over contempt of court.

    At this, the senior lawyer said that they were planning to file another contempt case.

    Here is the content of the audio leak:

    Nisar: Khawaja Sahab, I wanted to tell you something.

    Khawaja Tariq: Yes.

    Nisar: A judgement, please look into that. This is a seven-member judgement.

    Khawaja Tariq: By whom?

    Nisar: This is the sou moto (notice) number 4 of 2010, sir. This seven-member judgement, 2012, has been reported on page number 553 of the Supreme Court.

    Khawaja Tariq: Okay

    Nisar: This is okay, right?

    Khawaja Tariq: I will look into it.

    Nisar: Whoever is your lawyer, tell him to check it out. It states that if… never mind, you’ll know when you will read it.

    Khawaja Tariq: I will read. I have seen the seven-member bench judgement. They have stated in it that until the act is not formulated… if you read it carefully, clause three has it…

    Nisar: Yeah, yeah.

    Khawaja Tariq: They have given a way in it as well. Just see that.

    Nisar: Yes sir, I have seen that. That is the way out for you.

    Khawaja Tariq: That is the way out.

    Nisar: That is the way out or else there is no case.

    Khawaja Tariq: Yes exactly. I will see that as well.

    Nisar: And secondly Khawaja sahab, if someone is ready from your side, then use Muneer Ahmed Khan’s [case] as well. It is a very clear case of contempt of court.

    Khawaja Tariq: We are working on it.

    Nisar: Whatever happened in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, after that any…

    Khawaja Tariq: We are only waiting for the three-member bench’s verdict. It can take another half an hour. After that, we are filing another contempt of court case.

    Nisar: Okay then. Thank you, sir, thank you. 

    The leaked conversation has prompted online speculation that the former Chief Justice is discussing a contempt of court charge against current Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

    In March, another alleged audio clip of Nisar and Rahim surfaced online in which the two talked about formulating a case against Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz.

  • Supreme Court reserves decision over postponement of Punjab and KP elections

    The Supreme Court has reserved its decision over Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) elections and will announce the decision tomorrow (Tuesday).

    The hearing of the case has been going on for the past week with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) demanding immediate elections.

    On February 22, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial took a suo motu notice of the delay in elections, forming a larger bench to hear the case but later many top judges excused themselves from the hearing.

    Today, the hearing was headed by a three-judge bench comprising Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Ijaz ul Ahsan and Bandial.

    Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Awan, Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) lawyers Irfan Qadir and Sajeel Swati, PTI lawyer Ali Zafar, and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) counsel Farooq H. Naek were present in the courtroom.

    At the outset of the hearing, Naek came to the rostrum. Justice Bandial asked the lawyer if PPP had ended its boycott against the court hearing to which the latter replied that he had not boycotted the proceedings.

    Naek replied in the affirmative and said that “we never boycotted the hearing”.

    At one point during the hearing, the CJP noted that harmony among judges was crucial for the Supreme Court. He observed that while judicial proceedings were made public, consultations among judges were considered internal matters.

  • ‘Larger bench toot gya’: Justice Amin-Ud-Din recuses from hearing delay in elections case

    ‘Larger bench toot gya’: Justice Amin-Ud-Din recuses from hearing delay in elections case

    The Supreme Court was set to resume the hearing of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) plea against the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision to defer the elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at 11:30 but the hearing was delayed following Justice Amin-Ud-Din’s recusal.

    At the outset of today’s hearing, when the five-member bench came to the courtroom, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial said Justice Amin wanted to say something.

    “I recuse myself from the instant case in light of SC order issued by Justice Qazi Faez Isa,” the judge stated. 

    The original bench comprised CJP Bandial, Justice Ijaz Ul Ahsan, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Aminuddin, and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail.

    Justice Amin-Ud-Din concurred with Justice Isa while Justice Shahid Waheed dissented with the majority order of 2-1 in a suo moto case regarding the grant of 20 marks to Hafiz-e-Quran students while seeking admission to MBBS/BDS Degree under Regulation 9(9) of the MBBS and BDS (Admissions, House Job and Internship) Regulations, 2018.

  • Election suo moto: Supreme Court will hear the case tomorrow

    Election suo moto: Supreme Court will hear the case tomorrow

    Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial on Tuesday pointed out that the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision to postpone polls in Punjab was taken in haste.

    During the hearing, the criticism from top court judges, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail was also discussed.

    “Two honourable judges gave a decision. It’s the opinion of those two judges but is not related to the current case. Do not bypass a sensitive matter,” remarked the CJP.

    However, the two judges also said that the suo motu proceedings initiated by the CJP were “wholly unjustified”, besides being initiated with “undue haste”.

    About the polls matter, CJP Bandial remarked that the court does not want to drag this matter. He also said that elections are necessary for a democracy.

    The hearing was then postponed till 11:30am tomorrow (Wednesday).

    CJ Bandial says he respects colleague’s criticism, resumes hearing over polls

    After criticism of the unfettered powers enjoyed by Bandial by his fellow judges Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, the head of the apex court said that the note is his colleagues’ opinion.

    Earlier on Tuesday, the five-member larger resumed the hearing on election suo moto, with Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail sitting on the bench.

    ‘One-man power show’: Chief Justice under fire by his own colleagues

    On March 27, the top court judges said that the suo moto taken by the top court over the delay in elections was rejected by four judges so there is no point in the proceedings of the case.

    Turning their guns toward CJP Bandial, the two judges said that the SC can’t rely on him for its decision. Using strong words against the CJP, both of them were of the view that institutions should review this “one-man power show”.

    “When one person has too much power, there is a risk that the institution may become autocratic and insulated, resulting in one-man policies being pursued, which may have a tendency of going against the rights and interests of the people,” the document read.

    They said that CJP has unlimited powers and he can enjoy that tirelessly.

    Regarding the election matter, the top court judges directed Lahore High Court (LHC) and Peshawar High Court to settle the problem in both provinces.

    It should be noted that the Supreme Court had taken notice itself regarding the date of the election in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and initially a 9-member larger bench was formed on it. However, later, a five-member bench heard the case and announced that elections should be held within 90 days.

    Earlier, a bench headed by Bandial heard a plea by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) against the Election Commission’s decision to delay Punjab elections till October 8.

  • Met Khan and Bajwa twice, reveals Saqib Nisar

    Met Khan and Bajwa twice, reveals Saqib Nisar

    Former Chief of Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar has revealed details of his meetings with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, former army chief (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa and ex-Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Liteuatant General (retd) Faiz Hameed.

    In an interview, Saqib said that he had only met Imran twice. According to him, the first meeting took place when Khan was Prime Minister (PM) and the second was held after his ouster.

    Justice (retd) Nisar said that in the first meeting, the PTI chief had sought his guidance on NAB cases as they were going in vain. He also claimed that the former prime minister had requested him [Nisar] to suggest a suitable replacement for Shehzad Akbar — the then accountability czar.

    The former CJP claimed that he did not offer any advice to the former prime minister and rather suggested he take decisions on his own.

    On his second meeting, the former CJP said that he had advised the PTI chief not to talk about opening courts at midnight and that he should refrain from criticising the judiciary.

    It is pertinent to mention Nisar has been accused of favouring Khan and giving a verdict against the Sharif family as he disqualified former PM Nawaz Sharif for life.

    About Faiz, he said that he had met him multiple times during his time as the top judge of the country. The first meeting took place on the issue of missing persons and continued meeting him later as well.

    He also disclosed that he had met former army chief General (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa twice. “The former army chief had met for the first time to donate while the second meeting was held sometime earlier in Lahore.”

    According to Saqib, he had not discussed General (retd) Bajwa during his meeting with Imran Khan.

  • ‘Can we talk my Lord?’; Saqib Nisar denies, then confirms Khan contacted him

    ‘Can we talk my Lord?’; Saqib Nisar denies, then confirms Khan contacted him

    Former Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar has given contradictory statements about communicating with former Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan.

    Nisar told journalist and anchorperson Adil Shahzeb of Dawn News that he had had no contact with Khan. However, he agreed that he had been in touch with former spymaster General (retd) Faiz Hameed.

    Adil Shahzeb, while speaking on Geo News program ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath’, said that he talked to Nisar at 10AM on March 6 and the ex-CJP asked if he would lobby for Imran Khan as if his character was any less than the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief. “Are my capabilities and intelligence levels any less than Imran Khan’s that I would lobby for him?” Saqib Nisar was quoted as saying by the journalist.

    It was shocking for me, Adil said on the show.

    However, while talking to journalist Zahid Gishkori of Samma News, the former CJP confirmed that he had, in fact, spoken to Imran Khan.

    Gishkori tweeted the supposed conversation between Nisar and Khan.

    “Can we talk my Lord? Which time is convenient to talk?” read Khan’s text sent to Nisar some two weeks ago, as per Gishkori. It was 8PM when Justice Saqib Nisar responded, “You’re welcome.” 

    Gishkori while speaking on Shahzeb Khanzada’s show, said that Khan asked for Nisar’s help in the court cases filed against him, to which the former CJP responded: “I can’t help you”.

    “It is a difficult time for me,” Khan reportedly said, at which the ex-CJP reiterated that he wouldn’t be able to help the PTI chief out. 

    “I advised him that you are a former Premier and are targeting institutions and that he shouldn’t weaken institutions with unnecessary criticism,” the former CJP was quoted as saying by Gishkori.  

    The CJP also reportedly warned Khan about trouble if he continued with his ways.

  • ‘Imran Khan ko mukammal taur par sadiq aur amin nahi qarar diya tha’: Saqib Nisar

    ‘Imran Khan ko mukammal taur par sadiq aur amin nahi qarar diya tha’: Saqib Nisar

    Former Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar has said that he did not declare former Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan Sadiq and Amin [truthful and honest] on all aspects of his conduct.

    Journalist Adil Shahzeb disclosed details about his conversation with Nisar, stating that the former CJP said, “Imran Khan was declared Sadiq and Amin on three points. Akram Sheikh had only asked for a verdict on three points he gave against Imran Khan. On all three points, Imran Khan was found, Sadiq and Amin.”

    Nisar claimed that those talking about the court verdicts today “do not know anything about the law”.

    “The person who is attacking the courts today was a favourite of the courts. Apart from one case, he always got relief from the courts,” the former CJP claimed.

    The former CJP also revealed that his WhatsApp has been “hacked” for two days and the data has not been recovered.

    “I fear that my data may be used for special purpose however, the hackers will be disappointed,” said Nisar. He also claimed that before the hack different recordings were merged and audio was created.

    In the past few weeks, there had been speculation on Twitter that “explosive” audio leaks related to judiciary might surface soon.

    Journalists Azaz Syed and Umer Cheema also talked about possible audio conversation leaks on their YouTube show ‘Talk Shock’.

    Talking about the former spymaster, General (retd) Faiz Hameed, the former CJP was asked if he pressured Nisar to disqualify Nawaz Sharif in the Panama case. “Who is Gen Faiz Hameed, to pressurise me? I am being accused that I am lobbying for Imran Khan in the judiciary, why would I do that, I am worried about the future of my children,” said Nisar in reply.

    He also said that the contact between them was reserved to Lt Gen Hameed messaging him to ask about how he was doing.

    The former top judge said that he would no longer give interviews and a book about his life would be published after his death that would have the “complete story”.

  • ‘Only one prime minister in Pakistan’s history was considered very honest’: CJP Bandial

    ‘Only one prime minister in Pakistan’s history was considered very honest’: CJP Bandial

    Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial has said that “Only one prime minister in Pakistan’s history was considered very honest.” The remarks were passed during a hearing of a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) plea against amendments in National Accountability Bureau (NAB) laws. The Chief Justice, however, did not name the Prime Minister in question.

    “One honest prime minister’s government was ended through 58 (2b). Article 58 (2b) was a draconian law. The court had said in 1993 that the government was [sent packing] in a wrong manner but only elections should be conducted now,” the CJP said.

    Justice Bandial also said that the judiciary did not want to meddle in the legislative and that it had not taken notice itself of the NAB amendments ibut a petition had been filed. He highlighted that the court had rued its decision once before as well.

    A three-member Supreme Court bench — comprising CJP Bandial, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Ijazul Ahsan — PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s plea, which claims the new NAB laws are a “violation of fundamental rights

    The CJP said, “The PTI chief is not in the assembly and legislation like the NAB amendment is now becoming controversial.”

    Stating that the court has to determine what is standard of cases related to human rights, the government counsel asked, “Can anyone challenge legislation based on assumptions?”

    Replying to this, the CJP reiterated that Imran was no ordinary man but “the chief of a huge political party of the country and was a former prime minister”.

    Justice Bandial added: “His party decided to resign from the parliament due to political conflicts. His party then changed its mind and now they want to return. But they are not a part of parliament right now. But parliament is there.”

  • PTI rejects FIR against Imran Khan’s attempted assassination

    PTI rejects FIR against Imran Khan’s attempted assassination

    A First Report Information (FIR) has been registered against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s attempted assassination in Wazirabad almost a week after the tragic incident.

    The FIR has been lodged at the City Police Station in Wazirabad with sub-inspector Aamir Shahzad as the complainant.

    The prime suspect, Naveed, who was captured at the crime scene, has been nominated in the FIR. The report was registered under various charges including terrorism, murder and attempt to murder with sections 302, 324, 440 and Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997 included.

    According to the FIR, Imran Khan and other PTI leaders were headed to Wazirabad from Allahwala Chowk, when at 4pm, the accused, Naveed opened fire from the left side of the container, killing Muazzam son of Nawaz of Bharoki Cheema, who was a participant in the rally. Moreover, the FIR says the gun attack left Imran Khan wounded.

    PTI’s leaders have categorically rejected the FIR, while social media was flooded with the party’s supporters dismissing the report.

    PTI’s Secretary General Asad Umar tweeted, “The reality of the established system in the country came to the public. Not a few individuals, but the whole system was exposed to the nation.”

    PTI’s senior leader Fawad Chaudhry pointed out that the names of Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah and Major General Faisal were not mentioned in the FIR and thus the party rejected it.

    PTI leader Shireen Mazari said the FIR was an “attempt at a complete cover up by the three accused through the power of their positions and the state.”

    PTI leader Hammad Azhar also discredited the FIR and said the FIR should be re-named “NRO”.

    The FIR was registered after the Supreme Court (SC) on Monday directed Faisal Shahkar, Inspector General (IG) of Punjab Police, to register it.

    The Chief Justice (CJ), Umar Ata Bandial, warned that the court would take suo motu notice if the FIR of the attack was not registered within 24 hours.