Justice Qazi Faez Isa suspended indefinitely the proceedings of a three-member judicial commission appointed to scrutinize supposed leaked audio clips shared on social media.
The move came in the wake of an order from Pakistan’s Supreme Court bench, headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, to halt operations.
The federal government formed the commission on May 20 in response to concerns about the judiciary’s autonomy following the alleged audio leaks. Chief Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan from the Balochistan High Court and Chief Justice Aamer Farooq from the Islamabad High Court are serving alongside Justice Isa on the commission.
On Friday, the Supreme Court placed the commission’s activities on hold, paused the government’s May 19 announcement about its creation, and stopped the enforcement of the commission’s May 22 directive to hold public hearings and disclose the results.
During today’s hearing, Justice Isa referred to the top court’s “judicial order” as he postponed the meeting, confirming a written order would be given regarding the day’s proceedings. Justice Isa requested Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman Awan to clarify the court order and was subsequently handed a copy of the Supreme Court’s latest decision.
Justice Isa questioned why the inquiry commission was not informed before the hearing and why the AGP was present in court the previous day. In response, the AGP explained he was verbally instructed to attend and received a notice post-hearing.
According to Supreme Court guidelines, as Justice Isa pointed out, an order is issued after hearing from the respondents. He stated none of the petitioners had issued a notice to the commission, nor did they appear before the commission today.
Justice Isa questioned why it wasn’t communicated to the commission that it was not examining 209 (Supreme Judicial Council) and queried why the court was not informed of their order from the previous day.
Justice Isa instructed the AGP to recite the judges’ oath during the hearing, underscoring that the commission was constituted under law.
At a hearing addressing four petitions opposing the Justice Isa-led commission regarding the audio leaks, CJP Bandial advised the federal government to adhere to constitutional standards, referencing Article 175, which pertains to the superior judiciary. The Supreme Court later decided to adjourn further proceedings until May 31.
CJP Bandial expressed disappointment over the government’s hasty enactment of the Supreme Court (Practice & Procedure) Act, 2023, resulting in several errors and interference in the judiciary’s administrative affairs without consultation.
The CJP-led bench’s order reflected the arguments from the petitioner Abid Shahid Zuberi’s counsel. It brought attention to the role of a supposed “black hat hacker” in the leaked audio. The order also stated that the federal government’s unilateral action breached a significant constitutional principle.
