SC hearing petitions against Practice and Procedure Act yet to begin

Islamabad: Supreme Court is set to resume the hearing of a series of petitions challenging the Supreme Court (Practice & Procedure) Act, 2023, which aims to limit the powers of the Chief Justice of Pakistan.

An eight-member bench, led by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial and including Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Ayesha Malik, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, and Justice Shahid Waheed, will preside over the case.

The hearing, originally scheduled for 12 pm, has not yet commenced. The same panel of judges had previously suspended the bill on April 13, but it became law on April 21 despite the court's suspension.

Under the new law, a three-member committee consisting of the CJP and two senior-most judges will form benches and decide when to take suo motu action, a power previously held solely by the Chief Justice.

During the previous hearing, the Attorney General for Pakistan, Mansoor Usman Awan, informed the court of the government's intention to harmonize certain provisions of the Supreme Court (Practice & Procedure) Act 2023 and the Supreme Court (Review of Judgments and Orders) Act 2023, which expands the court's jurisdiction by granting the right to appeal under Article 184(3).

Chief Justice welcomed the government's stance and expressed satisfaction that the two laws would be reviewed to address any overlapping provisions.

Yet the scheduled hearing on petitions challenging the Practice & Procedure Act did not take place today.

After an hour of waiting, Justice Bandial called the Attorney General and the other lawyers to a meeting room. 

During the meeting, the Attorney General informed the court that immediate legislation on the overlapping provisions in the laws was not possible due to the upcoming budget session.

As a result, today's hearing was adjourned without any proceedings.