By Adnan Rafique
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan will remain functional during next week and hear cases as coronavirus pandemic is wreaking havoc in the country with over 12000 cases. According to the cause list of cases and the roster of sitting issued by the apex court, five benches of the top court comprising of the Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Gulzar Ahmed will lead the court proceedings.
The first bench would comprise of the chief justice and Justice Ijaz ul Ahsan, the second would comprise of Justice Mushir Alam, Justice Mazhar Alam and Justice Yahya Afridi. The third bench of the Supreme Court would consist of Justice Umar Ata Bandial and Justice Qazi Muhammad Amin while the four bench would comprise of Justice Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Amin-Ud-Din Khan. The last bench would include Justice Sajjad Ali Shah and Justice Mazahir Ali Akbar Naqvi.
It is pertinent to mention here that amid spread of coronavirus, the Supreme Court of Pakistan on April extended the parameter of preventive measures taken at the top court to avoid any outbreak within the premises. Under new guidelines, the working hours at all registries of the apex court were curtailed from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm every day except Friday when the offices would close at 12:00 noon.
The new schedule will remain applicable until 24 April. The urgent cases could be received at the court one hour before the closure timings. Only essential staff is being directed to visit the offices while women staffers or anyone aging above 50 is being sent on holidays.
