Reference can be filed against two SC judges over conduct in certain matters, says Sanaullah

Amid opposition over nomination of six judges to Supreme Court and transfer of jurists to Islamabad High Court (IHC), PM's aide on Political Affairs, Rana Sanaullah said that a possibility of filing a reference against two senior puisne judges of the apex court exists over "their conduct in certain matters". 

"Their [two SC judges] general attitude is to write letters on every issue...the letters make headlines first and later reach the addressee," the PML-N leader said while speaking to a private news channel on Tuesday.

His remarks came a day after the judicial commission approved the appointment of six new judges to the apex court amid a boycott by PTI lawmakers and two senior SC judges. The chief justices of all high courts, except the Lahore High Court (LHC) were among the six judges nominated.

Earlier, three judges — from Sindh, Balochistan, and Lahore — were transferred to the IHC, drawing severe criticism from the legal fraternity, including the IHC judges.

The five justices, contesting the seniority criteria, were of the view that the judges transferred from other high courts should take oath anew to reset their seniority.

Nevertheless, their representation was rejected by IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq, saying the new oath was not required as their seniority was calculated from the time they took oath in their respective high court and not from the date of their transfer.

Meanwhile, PTI Senator Hamid Khan said that the lawyer community would challenge the nominations of the six judges in the top court and vowed to continue the "protest movement".

Separately, all three representative bar councils of the federal capital — Islamabad Bar Council (IBC), Islamabad High Court Bar Association (IHCBA), and Islamabad District Bar Association (IDBA) — announced launching a long march during the hearing of 26th amendment-related petitions.

Speaking to the private news channel today, the PM’s aide said any act that became the source of the propaganda and brought a bad name to the institution could be linked to misconduct.

However, he clarified that this matter never came up for discussion in the Cabinet meeting.

Without naming anyone, the ruling PML-N leader said: “They are hindering the operations of the Supreme Court..oppose everything and boycott or write letters.”

Recalling the discord among the SC judges in the past, the PM’s aide said apex court judges used to be divided into groups of eight and seven. “Letter used to be issued to media,” he added without naming any judge.

Responding to PTI’s Secretary General Salman Akram Raja over controversy surrounding high court judges transfer to IHC, Sanaullah asked: “Is it written in the Constitution that the reasons for transfer should be mentioned?”

However, he said the relevant judge’s consent is mandatory for the transfer.

Furthermore, Sanaullah said that the PML-N and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) wanted to establish a constitutional court, as stipulated in the Charter of Democracy, signed in 2006.

"PTI [Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf] agreed with Maulana Fazlur Rehman and presented a draft for 26th Constitutional Amendment...constitutional bench was formed on PTI's proposal," he added.