Pakistan's Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa said on Tuesday that the Supreme Court has endorsed martial law several times in the past, and that many judges have forgotten their oaths after martial law has been imposed. He also said that the Supreme Court cannot allow anyone to disrupt the country, and that Parliament should be respected. "Everyone is just attacking Parliament," he said.
The CJP's remarks came during the second live hearing of petitions challenging the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023, a law that seeks to curtail the CJP's discretionary powers. CJP Isa was heading a full-court bench of 14 judges of the Supreme Court, and he decided that October 9 (Monday) would be the last day of the hearing. He cautioned that the proceedings could continue until midnight, but he also hinted at concluding the proceedings earlier in the day, saying that too many cases are pending in the Supreme Court. He directed the petitioner's counsel to complete his arguments in 10 minutes.
The proceedings of the case were broadcast live by state-run PTV. The full-court bench includes CJP Isa, Justice Sardar Tariq Masood, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Aminuddin Khan, Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhel, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Ayesha A. Malik, Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Justice Shahid Waheed, and Justice Musarrat Hilali. At the last hearing, the apex court's full court had sought replies from all parties by September 25.
