There cannot be two Supreme Courts in the country, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has said as he backs the establishment of constitutional courts to lower the burden of cases.

“Legislation is a basic responsibility of Parliament. There is no harm in exercising such a right,” he said while appearing on News Insight with Amir Zia via audio link.

Wahab was responding to a query related to the need for constitutional courts. He reiterated the justice system did not live up to the expectations made after the lawyers’ movement in former president General (retd) Musharraf’s tenure.

He claimed that right from the first day, the PPP advised the government to sit with all stakeholders on the proposed legislation to seek their input. “There is no ulterior motive,” Wahab said while clarifying the PPP’s intention behind supporting the legislation.

When asked about the need for bringing such changes from the lower courts, he agreed with the suggestion but asked whether the system allowed it. Wahab, who is also Karachi mayor, shared that the Perween Rahman’s case decision came nine years after her death despite a law passed that bound courts to announce a decision in seven days.

At one point, he said: “If a politician does anything wrong, then Parliament, people, and media correct him; when a lawyer does something wrong, a judge corrects, similarly PEMRA corrects media on its mistakes. But who will correct a judge?”

He added that there is a natural justice law that “no man should be the judge of his own cause.” Wahab, a lawyer himself, stated that the only institution that makes its decision without any supervision or any authority is the judiciary of Pakistan.

Wahab clarified that Qazi Faez Isa would retire as the chief justice of Pakistan on October 25 and there was no concept of extending his tenure in the SC. “No one is thinking of amending Article 176 (Constitution of Supreme Court) of the Constitution. Justice Mansoor Ali Shah is the senior most judge of SC, by virtue he will become the CJP.”

When asked about the military courts in the constitutional package, Wahab said that a national consensus should be built to have all stakeholders’ input for introducing such measures.

He added that the PPP and the JUI-F agreed on the constitutional court’s formation and the discussion was revolving around the appointment and its contours.

If today you decide that any MP cannot vote by leaving his part line, then there cannot be VONC and the budget cannot be rejected. When the 18th amendment was under way, if there was an objective then this VONC clause could have been removed.

PTI Senator Ali Zafar joined the programme in its second segment. He reiterated that it was better to introduce reforms from civil and district courts as hundreds of cases are pending there, rather than “jumping” the apex court.

He was of the view that there should be a constitutional bench before forming such a court to see the viability of such steps.