Daily Times

Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah on Friday urged Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial not to “push the country into anarchy”, asking him to constitute a full court bench of the Supreme Court to hear the case on the delay of elections to the Punjab Assembly. Speaking to reporters outside the apex court, the interior minister said that the bench, which originally comprised nine members, had dwindled down to seven, then five, and subsequently to four with yet another judge recently stepping down. According to Rana Sana, the departed judge was a senior member of the court and his dissenting note was unfortunate. The dissenting judge’s views were not considered when drafting the ruling, said the interior minister while referring to the verdict of the polls delay case. He added that the development amounted to nothing less than a national tragedy, and would also be a setback for the lawyers’ bar associations. Sana maintained that Justice Qazi Faiz Isa’s verdict was that of the court’s. He went on to state that he had never before heard of a Supreme Court decision being overruled by a circular, and that the Registrar’s role paled in comparison to that of the court’s bench.

He said that the ruling issued by Justice Qazi Faiz’s bench would remain valid unless challenged through the appropriate legal channels. He also stressed that the decision could not be annulled through a mere circular or notification.

The interior minister contended that the current economic and national crises were the result of former prime minister Imran Khan’s actions. He claimed that had the reference against Justice Qazi Faiz Isa not been initiated, such a crisis would not have arisen.

Sanaullah stressed that it was imperative for the chief justice to ensure that justice is served. He urged him to constitute a full bench in the case, saying that failure to do so would result in the country falling into a state of “chaos and anarchy”.

“Either a full bench should be constituted to arrive at a solution acceptable to all parties,” he urged, “or there is a risk that the decision will not be enforced.”

He further said that the process of dissolving the assemblies was flawed, as decisions in politics ought to be made through a collective effort. Political decisions, he emphasised, should never be unilateral.