Supreme Court of Pakistan’s Practice and Procedures Committee has decided to take up the review petition against the reserved seats case judgment after the end of the summer vacation, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
The SC has published the minutes of a recent session of the SC Practice and Procedures Committee, which met under the chair of Chief Justice Isa to hold discussions on the scheduling of review applications in special seats judgment on July 18.
During the hearing Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa called for an immediate hearing of review petitions concerning reserved seats, adding that constitutional rights must not be compromised for judicial convenience.
Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Muneeb Akhtar voiced concerns about the availability of judges due to summer vacations and their international travels. Moreover, they suggested that only the judges who initially heard the case should address the revision.
Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Muneeb Akhtar further said that the petition can not be heard during the summer vacation as the detailed judgment of the case has not been issued.
The decision not to fix the review plea in the case of reserved seats was taken by a majority of two to one.
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However, Chief Justice Isa opposed this view and argued that constitutional mandates should take precedence over procedural delays. CJP emphasized that failing to address the review promptly would violate constitutional rights and render the case ineffective.
Justice Akhtar defended the established rules for judicial holidays, stating that they cannot be altered once set. He further said in order to hear the review petition in vacation required amendments in the rules.
Nonetheless, Chief Justice Isa maintained that urgent cases like this one require immediate attention to prevent injustice. Chief Justice Qazi Faiz Isa has also written a separate note on the meeting. CJP said a week's time is enough for Justice Ayesha Malik, who is abroad, to join the court proceedings. He said rhe review application of the case related to the interpretation of Article 63A should also be decided soon. The Chief Justice said the review request against the decision of interpretation of Article 63 A has not been heard even after two years and two months. Justice Isa ordered that the review case against the decision of interpretation of Article 63A should be fixed within 10 days.
Earlier, 5-8 majority decision of the 13-member full court bench of SC said that Tehreek-e-Insaaf was and is a political party and PTI was entitled to reserved seats. The right does not expire.
The SC decision had further said that PTI should submit its list for specific seats within 15 days, adding that 39 out of 80 MNAs have expressed their allegiance to PTI, the remaining forty-one members should give an affidavit of party affiliation within 15 days.
Against this decision of the Supreme Court, the PML-N and members of the Assembly have filed review petitions. The PML-N petition claimed that the allocation of reserved seats to PTI did not follow the procedures, therefore seeks a stay on the July 12 decision until a thorough review can be conducted. The matter is expected to be addressed by relevant judicial and electoral authorities in the near future.
Reporter: Amanat Gishkori