Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial stated on Friday that the formation of the government-appointed judicial commission, which was done in order to look into audio leaks that have appeared on social media in recent months, “interfered in the judiciary’s internal matters.”
The chief justice made these comments as a five-judge panel was deliberating a set of four petitions filed by Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) President Abid Shahid Zuberi, SCBA Secretary Muqtedir Akhtar Shabbir, PTI Chairman Imran Khan and Attorney Riaz Hanif Rahi to declare the creation of the audio commission illegal.
The bench comprised CJP Bandial, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi and Justice Shahid Waheed.
It should be noted that Abid Zuberi and Muqtedir Shabbir filed the petition on Thursday, in which they requested the SC to order the federal government, the inquiry commission, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority to identify persons or entities operating anonymous Twitter accounts/handles.
They further requested the court to pass directions to fix responsibility for engaging in the unconstitutional practice of illegal phone tapping in the territory of Pakistan.
The commission, headed by Justice Qazi Faez Isa, was formed on May 20 under Section 3 of the Pakistan Commission of Inquiry Act 2017 and is required to conclude the task within a month.
During the hearing today, the CJP said that there were errors in the notification issued by the government for the formation of the commission.
“The Constitution gives complete freedom to the judiciary,” he remarked. “The investigation that was supposed to be conducted by the institutions was entrusted to judges.”
Justice Bandial further said, “We have no other structure but the power of morality and justice.”
After two-hour-long proceedings, the court reserved its verdict on the petitions and said that an appropriate order would be issued today.
