——– Anticlimactic adjournment as hearing feature Imran ends without him speaking
——– Directs to ensure Khan appear in next hearing too
——– Initiates investigation after Imran video link picture goes viral
ISLAMABAD: Deposed premier and PTI founder Imran Khan appeared on Thursday before a five-member larger bench of the Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, resumed hearing on Thursday the government’s intra-court appeal against the apex court’s decision to nullify the NAB law amendments.
Other members of the larger bench include Justice Aminuddin Khan, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi.
The former premier appeared via video link from Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail.
As the hearing commenced today, the CJP called Attorney General Mansoor Usman Awan to the rostrum along with the government’s counsel, Makhdoom Ali Khan.
Khawaja Haris, who earlier represented Imran during the first round of litigation, also appeared in court. The chief justice said he was the counsel in the “original case” and the court would also like to hear his stance.
Haris informed the court that he would assist the court in the matter. Following his remarks, the chief justice asked Haris to present his arguments loudly to ensure Imran can hear via video link.
The government’s counsel then began presenting his arguments and informed the apex court that the NAB amendment case was sub judice before the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
When Justice Minallah asked if the petition was accepted by the IHC, Makhdoom replied in the positive.
The chief justice then sought the records of the case in the IHC, including the order.
Justice Minallah inquired about the objections raised by the registrar’s office on the plea of the PTI founder, to which Makhdoom responded that the petitioner hadn’t approached any other forum.
He added that the Supreme Court had removed the objection and issued notices to the respondents on July 19, 2022. When asked by Justice Minallah about the number of hearings in the main case, Makhdoom stated there were a total of 53.
CJP Isa questioned why the case dragged on for so long, to which the government counsel explained that the petitioner took extended time in presenting arguments. Justice Mandokhail then asked about the time taken to legislate the NAB laws in 1999. AGP Awan replied that the NAB laws were enacted within a month after the martial law was imposed.
Expressing astonishment at the prolonged case, the chief justice remarked on the 53 hearings. CJP Isa raised concerns about the case being accepted for hearing in the SC while sub judice before the Islamabad High Court, asking if the court addressed this in the judgment. Makhdoom replied affirmatively, citing a paragraph from the order.
When asked about the time taken on the main case, Makhdoom mentioned that the petitioner’s lawyer spent the entire 2022 arguing the case. Justice Mandokhail asked about the time taken to draft the complete NAO. AGP mentioned that the ordinance was prepared within two months after Musharraf came to power.
Expressing dismay at the lengthy proceedings, the chief justice questioned why it took so long, especially with Makhdoom Ali Khan present in the case. The government counsel explained that it took considerable time for the petition to be declared maintainable.
Justice Minallah noted the suspension of the Practice and Procedure Act, affecting the presence of a committee. Makhdoom mentioned Justice Mansoor Ali Shah advising against proceeding with the NAB law case without deciding on the Practice and Procedure Act.
The chief justice questioned the sustainability of suspending laws, likening it to suspending parliamentary proceedings. He expressed concerns about the consequences of such actions on the country’s progress.
Justice Mandokhail questioned if suspending a bill was akin to suspending parliament’s proceedings. The CJP criticized the practice, questioning the integrity of suspending laws one dislikes.
The court then adjourned the hearing for an indefinite period, with the chief justice stating that he would not be present in the country during the months of June.
The larger bench in its Oct 31 order asked the accountability courts to proceed with trials but refrained them from announcing the final judgment. Former prime minister Imran Khan had challenged the amendments to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) law.
The apex court by a majority of 2-1 had declared the amendments to NAO 2000 as unconstitutional. It had ordered the reopening of all corruption cases worth less than Rs500 million that were previously closed against political leaders from various parties and public office holders.
Furthermore, the apex court had directed the NAB to return all case records to the relevant courts within seven days.
Imran appearance via video link
On the previous hearing, the court accepted the request of PTI founder Imran Khan to appear in the court through a video link. This will be the deposed premier’s first public appearance in nine months and this will also be the first time Imran appears before a bench led by Chief Justice Isa, who faced a presidential reference during the PTI government.
On Wednesday, the government accepted Imran’s request for his meeting with lawyers Khawaja Haris and Intezar Panjota to prepare for his court appearance. On Tuesday, the top court had ordered the authorities concerned to provide video link facilities to Imran. In this regard, it was learnt, that the apex court staff also visited the Adiala jail on Wednesday.
It is an open secret that the relationship between CJP Isa and the PTI has remained tense since the filing of the presidential reference in May 2019. Even a bench led by ex-CJP Gulzar Ahmed had held that Justice Isa should not hear cases related to Imran.
However, the PTI did not refer to this order during CJP Isa’s tenure.
Imran is the third former prime minister, who has been given the right to an audience by the SC during imprisonment.
Earlier, during his detention in a murder case, Bhutto came to the SC and addressed the bench.
The SC, led by former CJP Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui, had allowed Nawaz to speak before the bench during his imprisonment after the 1999 military coup. Now, Imran will address the SC during his imprisonment.
Earlier, The Supreme Court (SC) initiated an investigation on Thursday into incarcerated PTI supremo Imran Khan’s pictures going viral from within the courtroom as he appeared before the apex court via video link from Adiala jail.
The former premier appeared before a five-member larger bench of the SC, led by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, when it resumed hearing the government’s intra-court appeal against the apex court’s decision to nullify the NAB law amendments.
The court accepted the request of PTI founder Imran Khan to appear in the court via video link at the last hearing. This was the deposed premier’s first public appearance in nine months. –Agencies
