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Chief Justice says, “Half the judiciary will go home if a judge is removed for giving a speech.”
ISLAMABAD: Qazi Faez Isa stated on Tuesday that the speech’s content, not the speech itself, is the issue in the case involving the Supreme Judicial Council’s removal of former Islamabad High Court judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui.
Half of the judiciary will return home if a judge is ousted for making a speech, said the chief justice.
“Judges frequently speak at bar council gatherings. The speech itself is not the issue; rather, it is the speech’s text,” he said.
“A judge is not prohibited from speaking by the code of conduct. Making demands in your discourse is the issue, CJP continued.
The nation’s highest court made these comments as the hearing on the former judge’s plea contesting his dismissal resumed.
Live broadcasts of the proceedings are available on the website and YouTube channel of the Supreme Court.
In the case, Khawaja Haris is defending former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) director general Lieutenant General (retd) Faiz Hameed and Brigadier (retd) Irfan Ramay, while attorney Hamid Khan is representing the former IHC judge.
Read More: CJP Faez Isa emphasizes citizens’ Right to Information for Accountability
After the judge filed a miscellaneous application with the Supreme Court to have an early hearing of his plea against the Supreme Judicial Council’s (SJC) decision to remove him, the matter was scheduled for hearing earlier this month.
The plea was heard by a five-member bench chaired by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa and consisting of Justices Amin-ud-Din Khan, Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Hasan Azhar Rizvi, and Irfan Saadat Khan.
According to the chief justice, justices participate in American discussions and conduct interviews in Britain.
“Everyone in the country is watching us.” The top justice questioned what ruling the bench should make in such a situation, saying, “This is the question of respecting the constitutional institutions.”
Judge Mandokhail questioned if Siddiqui’s level of claims was proper for a judge to make.
“If the allegations are true, was Shaukat Siddiqui’s procedure as a judge appropriate?” inquired Justice Mandokhail.
Read More: CJP Faez Isa emphasizes citizens’ Right to Information for Accountability
The chief justice declared that the judge’s expression is unrestricted. “Many judges would not have heard the speech if this were the case. The issues are those that Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui brought out in his address.”
He questioned if the court could look at the situation directly. “Can the Supreme Judicial Council case be constitutionally remanded?”
The attorney for Hamid and Ramay responded to CJP Isa by stating that the case could not be sent to the SJC.
He declared, “Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui is retired and cannot be reinstated as a judge,” therefore it was no longer possible for the SJC to investigate his case.
The former intelligence chief and others were to be named in the plea against his dismissal by retired judge Siddiqui, the highest court said during the case’s final hearing on December 14, 2017.
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