Supreme Court judge Justice Mansoor Ali Shah expressed his concerns in a letter to the SC Practice and Procedure Committee following his absence from a meeting on Monday, stating that he cannot participate until the full court ordinance is reviewed.

In a letter to the judges’ committee, Justice Shah stated that the previous committee could have continued its work even after the ordinance was issued.

Justice Shah departed without attending the judges committee meeting in Islamabad. Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan waited for Justice Shah to arrive before deciding to leave the session. The lack of attendance from the SC judge led to the early adjournment of the meeting.

It was the first session the federal government promulgated an ordinance to amend the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023. CJP Isa was supposed to preside over the meeting, which was held to decide the formation of benches for the cases to be heard next week.

He criticised the immediate restructuring of the committee as “unnecessary” and described the inclusion of a preferred member as an “undemocratic approach” and a “one-man show.”

Justice Shah also questioned the “lack of explanation” for the removal of Justice Munib Akhtar from the committee.

Last week, CJP Isa changed the composition of the three-judge committee by substituting Justice Khan in place of Justice Akhtar moments after President Asif Ali Zardari signed off the amended Act.

Under the previous legal framework, the three-member panel handling cases under Article 184(3) of the Constitution—commonly known as the apex court’s suo motu jurisdiction—was required to consist of the three most senior judges.

But a recent ordinance has revised this provision, granting the CJP the authority to select any SC judge to serve as the third member of this panel.

The senior puisne judge outlined three conditions for his return to the Practice and Procedure Committee. Justice Shah stated that he would not participate until the full court reviewed the constitutional status of the ordinance. The SC judge emphasised that he would not attend meetings until the full court decides on the implementation of amendments through the ordinance. Lastly, he insisted that he would not rejoin the committee until the chief justice of Pakistan restored the previous committee and reinstated Justice Akhtar.

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The letter also called for the formation of a full court bench to address the presidential ordinance or for a full court meeting to be convened on the administrative side.

In April, the SC judge stressed the need for developing a firewall around the judicial system to prevent any interference in judicial matters.

“Judiciary will stand united against any interference that will come their way. There must be a firewall,” he said in his address to the fifth Asma Jahangir Conference with the theme of ‘People’s Mandate: Safeguarding Civil Rights in South Asia’ at the Faletti’s Hotel in Lahore on April 17, 2024.