The Supreme Court will begin hearing three petitions on Thursday that challenge the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Bill 2023, aimed at restricting the Chief Justice’s powers, including suo motu and the formation of benches.
The eight members bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial and will hear the petitions at 11:30 am on April 13
The bill was passed by a joint sitting of parliament earlier this week after President Dr. Arif Alvi returned it.
Three separate petitions were subsequently filed by Raja Amer Khan, Chaudhry Ghulam Hussain, and Mohammad Shafay Munir, among others, under Article 184(3) of the Constitution, requesting the top court to set aside the bill.
According to the supplementary cause list uploaded on the Supreme Court website. The bill has also been challenged in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) by lawyer Saeed Aftab in a separate plea.
The Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Bill 2023 aims to establish a three-member committee comprising senior judges, including the Chief Justice, with the power to take suo motu notice. It also aims to ensure transparent proceedings in the apex court and include the right to appeal.
The bill outlines that every cause, matter, or appeal before the apex court would be heard and disposed of by a bench constituted by a committee comprising the CJP and the two senior-most judges. A majority would make decisions of the committee.
The bill aims to establish a three-member committee comprising senior judges, including the chief justice, to take suo motu notice, have transparent proceedings in the apex court, and include the right to appeal. It also proposes that every cause, matter, or appeal before the apex court be heard and disposed of by a bench constituted by a committee comprising the CJP and the two senior-most judges.
The bill also specifies that any matter invoking the use of Article 184(3) would first be placed before the committee and that appeals for any verdict by an apex court bench that exercised jurisdiction under Article 184(3) must be filed within 30 days of the bench’s order for a larger SC bench.
The bill further provides that a party would have the right to appoint its counsel of choice for filing a review application under Article 188 of the Constitution and that an application pleading urgency or seeking interim relief, filed in a cause, appeal, or matter, shall be fixed for hearing within 14 days from the date of its filing.
The bill’s provisions would have effect notwithstanding anything contained in any other law, rules, or regulations for the time being in force or judgment of any court, including the Supreme Court and high courts.
 Bill 2023, which aims to limit the powers of the Chief Justice. The bill has also been challenged in the Islamabad High Court by a separate plea.){kind=link}