In the light of the recent allegations of garnering undue monetary benefits directed at Dr Arsalan Chaudhry, the son of the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, the latter has taken suo motu notice, ordered a full investigation, and formed a three-member bench for a hearing on Wednesday. The bench is headed by the CJP himself. According to media reports, Dr Arsalan allegedly received over Rs 400 million from real estate Mogul Malik Riaz, who has several cases pending in the Supreme Court. Along with cash, it is being said that Malik Riaz also financed a few foreign trips taken by Dr Arsalan. Malik Riaz has several cases filed against him accusing him of illegal land grabbing for the expansion of Bahria Town. How the alleged cash benefits may have compromised the cases remains unanswered, but the murmurs in the media have taken a new level of resonance as the case became front page news. Barring Malik Riaz, Dr Arsalan is alleged to have benefited from a number of profitable deals made with several prominent names of the country. He is accused of becoming a multi-millionaire in the last few years because of these alleged deals. Notices have been issued to Dr Arsalan Chaudhry, Malik Riaz and the Attorney General of Pakistan to appear before the SC. The allegation of influencing the judicial process is a serious matter, especially when the accused is a son of the supreme judicial authority of the country. Therefore, as expected, the CJP has ordered a prompt hearing to investigate fully the scandal surrounding his son. TV anchors of three primetime shows, who ‘broke’ and discussed the scandal have also been asked to present before the court the written or video evidence of the allegation, which some hinted they had.aAlbeit a positive step, the composition of the bench is being criticised as the CJP himself has chosen to preside over it. In our and the rest of the world’s jurisprudence, any case involving a conflict of interest would have led to the judge or judges in question recusing themselves from hearing the case. The fairness of the proceedings would only be beyond question if the bench has no connection with those accused, thereby ensuring a transparent and credible due process. In the hearing in question, to ensure an unbiased, unprejudiced, fair, open-minded, non-discriminatory and impartial assessment, the honourable CJP Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry should recuse himself and set up a fresh bench. This is the only way to ensure that the hearing is not only above any accusations of partisanship, but also seen as fulfilling the requirement that justice is seen to be done without fear or favour. *