On Wednesday, the Supreme Court rejected Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) Deputy Convener Mustafa Kamal’s plea for instant acceptance of his apology in a contempt suo motu case.
A three-member bench led by Chief Justice Isa, including Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan and Justice Irfan Saadat Khan, heard the case against Kamal and independent Senator Faisal Vawda.
Both politicians held press conferences in Islamabad in May to criticize the judiciary. Vawda stated that no allegations could be made without evidence, while Kamal called for ethical standards for judges and suggested justice could be “bought.”
Their statements followed a letter from six Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges to Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) members, highlighting intelligence agency interference in judicial matters. The politicians also mentioned an IHC judge’s dual citizenship.
The Supreme Court took suo motu notice of their remarks shortly after and issued show-cause notices following a May 17 hearing.
Kamal responded with an unconditional apology, stating he held all judges, particularly those of the superior courts, in high regard.
Senator Vawda, however, refused to issue an unconditional apology, arguing that others had made similar remarks.
