By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) on Friday halted a judicial probe into audio leaks that have surfaced in recent months and implicated judges from the top court and other individuals.
A five-member bench of the country’s top court, led by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, issued the order after hearing arguments from lawyers representing the government, the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), and other parties.
In its order, the court suspended the government’s notification regarding the establishment of a judicial panel.
The court said the government had violated the constitution by appointing a judge as the chairman of the commission without seeking permission from the chief justice. It also said that the constitutional process for forming the commission was suspicious.
“In the circumstances, until the next date of hearing, the operation of the impugned notification No.SRO.596(I)/2023 dated 19.05.2023 issued by the federal government is suspended, as is the order dated 22.05.2023 made by the Commission, and, in consequence thereof, proceedings of the Commission are stayed.”
Last week, the government formed a three-member commission, led by Supreme Court Judge Qazi Faez Isa and two high court judges, to investigate the audio leaks that had surfaced on social media in recent months. These leaks also involved a sitting judge of the court and audio recordings of relatives of the chief justice.
As the commission began its work, several petitions were filed challenging the constitutionality of the commission by Abid Shahid Zuberi, president of the SCBA, Muqtedir Akhtar Shabbir, secretary of the SCBA, Imran Khan, chairman of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, and an advocate Riaz Hanif Rahi.
During the hearing, the Chief Justice observed that the government had interfered in the judiciary’s affairs by appointing a judge as the commission’s chairman without seeking permission from the chief justice. The Attorney General, Mansoor Awan, objected to Chief Justice Bandial’s inclusion in the bench, but his objections were overruled.
The Supreme Court’s decision is seen as a setback for the government in the ongoing power struggle between the executive and the judiciary, which began when the government refused to provide funds for elections in the Punjab province.
The top court is scheduled to resume the hearing of the petitions on May 31, as stated in the written verdict. The Supreme Court also suspended the notification regarding the audio leak commission, which was issued on May 19.
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