NEW DELHI: A significant backdoor conflict between the judiciary and Pakistan’s intelligence company has come out into the open because the Islamabad excessive court docket has sought motion directed at Inter-Companies Intelligence’s (ISI) “interference” in judicial issues.
The excessive court docket has urged the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) to convene a judicial conference over the ISI’s alleged interference.
All seven Islamabad excessive court docket judges, barring chief decide Amer Farooq, wrote to the Supreme Judicial Council and all Supreme Court docket judges to attract their consideration in the direction of makes an attempt of senior ISI officers to strain judges and affect judicial proceedings.
In a letter to the SJC, six judges of the IHC–Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani, Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, Justice Babar Sattar, Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan, Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir, and Justice Saman Fafat Imtiaz–sought steerage from the council on the “interference” of the spy businesses in courts’ affairs, reported information company ANI quoting Geo Information.
“We’re writing to hunt steerage from the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) with regard to the obligation of a decide to report and reply to actions on the a part of members of the chief, together with operatives of intelligence businesses, that search to intrude with discharge of his/her official capabilities and qualify as intimidation, in addition to the obligation to report any such actions that come to his/her consideration in relation to colleagues and/or members of the courts that the Excessive Court docket supervises,” the letter learn.
The event comes days after the highest court docket declared the elimination of former Islamabad excessive court docket decide Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui unlawful and directed authorities to think about Siddiqui as a retired decide.
“This matter has arisen within the aftermath of the judgment dated 22.03.2024 rendered by the Supreme Court docket within the matter of Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui vs. Federation of Pakistan (C.P. No. 76 of 2018), during which it has been declared that Justice Siddiqui, who was the senior puisne decide of Islamabad Excessive Court docket (“IHC”), was wrongfully eliminated on the idea of a report of the Supreme Judicial Council (“SJC”) dated 11.10.2018, and could be deemed to have retired as a decide of the IHC,” it learn.
“Justice Siddiqui had been eliminated after he had publicly alleged that operatives of the Inter-Companies Intelligence (“ISI”), led by Main Basic Faiz Hameed (DG-C of ISI), had been figuring out the structure of benches at IHC and interfering with proceedings of the Accountability Court docket Islamabad,” the letter added.
The court docket famous that the Supreme Judicial Council proceeded in opposition to Justice Siddiqui on the “assumption that the reality or falseness of the allegations levelled” by the previous decide was “irrelevant”.
The Islamabad excessive court docket judges, of their letter, additionally famous that the code of conduct for judges prescribed by SJC doesn’t information on how they “should react to and/or report incidents which are tantamount to intimidation and intrude with judicial independence“.
The judges mentioned that they “consider it’s crucial to inquire into and decide whether or not there exists a seamless coverage on the a part of the chief department of the state” to intrude in judicial affairs.
The excessive court docket has urged the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) to convene a judicial conference over the ISI’s alleged interference.
All seven Islamabad excessive court docket judges, barring chief decide Amer Farooq, wrote to the Supreme Judicial Council and all Supreme Court docket judges to attract their consideration in the direction of makes an attempt of senior ISI officers to strain judges and affect judicial proceedings.
In a letter to the SJC, six judges of the IHC–Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani, Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, Justice Babar Sattar, Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan, Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir, and Justice Saman Fafat Imtiaz–sought steerage from the council on the “interference” of the spy businesses in courts’ affairs, reported information company ANI quoting Geo Information.
“We’re writing to hunt steerage from the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) with regard to the obligation of a decide to report and reply to actions on the a part of members of the chief, together with operatives of intelligence businesses, that search to intrude with discharge of his/her official capabilities and qualify as intimidation, in addition to the obligation to report any such actions that come to his/her consideration in relation to colleagues and/or members of the courts that the Excessive Court docket supervises,” the letter learn.
The event comes days after the highest court docket declared the elimination of former Islamabad excessive court docket decide Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui unlawful and directed authorities to think about Siddiqui as a retired decide.
“This matter has arisen within the aftermath of the judgment dated 22.03.2024 rendered by the Supreme Court docket within the matter of Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui vs. Federation of Pakistan (C.P. No. 76 of 2018), during which it has been declared that Justice Siddiqui, who was the senior puisne decide of Islamabad Excessive Court docket (“IHC”), was wrongfully eliminated on the idea of a report of the Supreme Judicial Council (“SJC”) dated 11.10.2018, and could be deemed to have retired as a decide of the IHC,” it learn.
“Justice Siddiqui had been eliminated after he had publicly alleged that operatives of the Inter-Companies Intelligence (“ISI”), led by Main Basic Faiz Hameed (DG-C of ISI), had been figuring out the structure of benches at IHC and interfering with proceedings of the Accountability Court docket Islamabad,” the letter added.
The court docket famous that the Supreme Judicial Council proceeded in opposition to Justice Siddiqui on the “assumption that the reality or falseness of the allegations levelled” by the previous decide was “irrelevant”.
The Islamabad excessive court docket judges, of their letter, additionally famous that the code of conduct for judges prescribed by SJC doesn’t information on how they “should react to and/or report incidents which are tantamount to intimidation and intrude with judicial independence“.
The judges mentioned that they “consider it’s crucial to inquire into and decide whether or not there exists a seamless coverage on the a part of the chief department of the state” to intrude in judicial affairs.
(With ANI inputs)
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