A nine-member larger bench of the Supreme Court convened to address a longstanding presidential reference aiming to review the 1979 contentious death penalty imposed on former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
Chaired by Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa, the bench included Justices Sardar Tariq Masood, Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Yahya Afridi, Amin Ud Din Khan, Jamal Khan Mandokhel, Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, and Musarrat Hilali.
Notable figures such as Bilawal Bhutto, Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, Raza Rabbani, Farooq H Naek, and Attorney General Mansoor Awan were present during the session.
The proceedings involved discussions around an envelope containing a hard disk received by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa and the submission of transcripts and videos by Farooq Naek. Raza Rabbani clarified his position as the legal representative of Sanam, Bakhtawar, and Aseefa Bhutto, and Barrister Salahuddin sought permission to assist the court due to his familial connection.
Various legal figures presented perspectives on the presidential reference, emphasizing its unique nature and its basis on an interview of former judge Naseem Hassan Shah regarding Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's case.
The court viewed the video of Justice (retd) Naseem Hassan Shah and engaged in discussions about the legality of revisiting a Supreme Court judgment based on the interview's content. Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa stressed the court's role in reviewing cases where justice might not have been served impartially.
The session culminated in Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa outlining the representation of specific individuals and their objections, followed by an adjournment of further proceedings until the third week of February.
In 2011, Former President Asif Ali Zardari initiated this legal action through a Presidential Reference, invoking Article 186 of the Constitution to reassess the trial of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the founder of the PPP and former Prime Minister of Pakistan.
