The bench has sent the matter to CJP Khosa for constitution of another bench for hearing of the case.
ISLAMABAD: (UrduPoint/ Pakistan Point News-21st Oct, 2019) Once again, a full bench of the Supreme Court seized with the hearinng of differenet petitions challenging a reference Justice Qazi Faez Isa of the Supreme Court has been dissolved owing to unavailability of Justice Mazhar Alam.
The bench sent the matter to the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Asif Saeed Khosa for formation of a new bench to hear the case.
A ten-member bench was hearing the petitions challenging a reference against Justice Qazi Faez Isa, the sitting judge of the Supreme court.
On last hearing, Attorney General for Pakistan Anwar Mansoor Khan submitted a response in a presidential reference filed against Justice Qazi Faez Isa, saying that Justice Isa was owning three properties in Britain and was still reluctant to reveal the sources of his income used to purchase the properties. The attorney general also said that the presidential reference postulated ‘benami’ nature of the properties abroad “which were concealed and not disclosed as required by the law.”
The top law officer told the Supreme Court that the properties identified in London were of "Benami nature" and Justice Qazi Faez Isa was the sole owner of these properties. He said that if the law minister distributed cheques in the bars it was not wrong. However, about Justice Isa's reference, the attorney general said: "No one is above the law. Under Article 248, the President and the prime minister are given exemption for performing their duties,".
In rejoinder to government's statement before the top court, Justice Qazi Faez Isa through Attorney General for Pakistan Anwar Mansoor Khan said that the Federal government just defaming and scandalising a Supreme Court judge by accusing him of possessinig "benami" properties abraod despite that the reference moved against him did not contain such allegations.
The judge said that the government was now targetting his family and by doing so it had exposed them to danger, sayaing that he was under no obligation to declare the income or assets or money trail of his independent wife and children since Pakistani law did not conflate the identities of different family members merely on account of their kinship. The independence of judiciary had been compromised by filing a reference against the SC judge, he said in his rejoinder.
It may also be mentioned here that a number of lawyers had moved petitions before the Supreme Court challenging reference against Justice Qazi Faez Isa. Howeverr, the bench has once again been dissolved and the hearing of the matter has been delayed for an indefinite period.
