Daily Times

The Supreme Court on Monday announced its decision on whether the present six-judge bench or a larger bench would hear a set of petitions seeking review of the court’s majority judgement in Justice Qazi Faez Isa case, sending the matter to the Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed, a private TV channel reported.

Justice Umar Ata Bandial, who was presiding the six-judge bench, announced the 5-1 majority judgement. Justice Manzoor Ahmad Malik disagreed and will write a dissenting note.

The review petitions had been moved by Justice Isa, his wife Sarina Isa and different bar councils, calling for formation of a larger bench instead of a six-judge bench. “The chief justice can form a larger bench on review petitions if he wants,” said the apex court, adding that normally the bench which delivers the judgement also hears the review petitions.

It also noted that review jurisdiction could only be invoked in relation to the unanimous and majority judgements passed by the Supreme Court. Justice Bandial said it was mandatory to include the judge who wrote the decision in the review bench and if they were not available, then “the judge who agreed with the [court] order is part of the bench”. “As a matter of law and settled practice it is for the [honourable chief justice], as master of the roster, to determine the composition of the bench and he may, for like reason, constitute a larger bench for hearing the review petition,” the order stated.

A six-judge bench headed by Justice Bandial had reserved the decision in a previous hearing on December 10, 2020.