The PTI has demanded Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa and Islamabad High Court (IHC) CJ Aamer Farooq resign from their posts, following six IHC judges letter that raised the alleged matter of executive and intelligence agencies’ interference in the judiciary.
“The most important thing is that this letter is written to the Supreme Judicial Council and the IHC chief justice has been indicted in the letter,” PTI Secretary Information Rauf Hassan, along with the party’s legal minds, told a press conference in Islamabad.
Leaders of the former ruling party were addressing the press conference a day after they rejected the formation of a retired judge-led inquiry commission on the judges’ letter.
Six out of eight judges of IHC in a letter to the SJC on Tuesday demanded that a judicial convention be summoned over the alleged intelligence agencies’ interference in the judiciary. After this, the CJP twice convened a full court meeting.
On Thursday, CJP Isa said that “interference by the executive” in the affairs and judicial workings of judges “will not be tolerated”. He was quoted as saying in a statement from the Supreme Court issued after the full court meeting and his meeting with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
At the presser, Rauf described the IHC chief justice as “complicit and tout” and alleged that under his supervision former prime minister Imran Khan was punished. “The first indictment is of the IHC CJ,” he said and added that the CJP was also mentioned about this.
According to the party’s spokesperson, incumbent Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was also involved in it.
“We will take all those steps that law allows us,” he Rauf said and demanded that other judges also share their experience of how they were allegedly pressurised. “We won’t let this letter be pushed under the rag.”
He used the word “judicial surrender”, claiming that the judiciary was surrendering its independence before the executive.
Niazullah Niazi, the party’s chief election commissioner, said that it was about the Constitution and law. “We demand CJP Isa and the IHC chief justice resign immediately because of the way courts conducted cases against Imran Khan. Our war is against the rule of law,” he said and cast doubts on the incumbent prime minister.
He added that the party’s time for press conferences has ended. “We are hopefully going towards lawyers’ movement. We will lead the whole nation. The Constitution allows us to protest. We will go to the SC,” Niazi said and added that Imran Khan has allowed them to stage a countrywide protest.
PTI’s Shoaib Shaheen wanted 15 judges of the Supreme Court to hear the matter not a retired judge. The matter should be conducted transparently, he added.
When asked, Shaheen said that they would protect their rights by living in the system. The party would conduct a rally on Sunday, in Rawalpindi on April 19, and in Karachi on April 21.
