The Supreme Court’s constitutional bench on Wednesday adjourned the hearing of review petitions regarding reserved seats until Thursday
ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – 21st May, 2025) The Supreme Court’s constitutional bench on Wednesday adjourned the hearing of review petitions regarding reserved seats until Thursday.
The hearing was conducted by an eleven-member constitutional bench, headed by Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan. The bench included Justices Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Naeem Akhtar Afghan, Musarrat Hilali, Hashim Kakar, Shahid Bilal, Salahuddin Panhwar, Aamir Farooq, and Ali Baqar Najafi.
Advocate Hamid Khan, Counsel for Lahore High Court Bar Association sought live broadcast of court proceedings. He contended that hearings related to the main case on reserved seats were previously broadcast live and had kept the public informed.
Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar observed that after taking oath, the former Chief Justice had convened a full court meeting where it was decided by majority that proceedings of the Practice and Procedure case should be aired live as a pilot project.
Some judges, however, had opposed this. He added that a two-member committee comprising himself and Justice Athar Minallah was formed to recommend mechanisms for live broadcasting. The committee proposed broadcasting from all courtrooms. He also noted that live coverage of the Zulfikar Ali Bhutto reference was also approved during Chief Justice Isa’s tenure. The committee’s recommendations were pending full administrative court approval, and live streaming remains in pilot phase.
Hamid Khan argued that a precedent for a pilot project had already been set. Justice Jamal Mandokhail remarked that the decision he was referring to had already been implemented. Khan urged the court to first rule on the petition seeking live streaming of the proceedings.
Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan responded that such requests would not be decided individually but collectively after hearing all relevant parties. He questioned whether the reserved seats case should be heard after the verdict on the 26th Constitutional Amendment?. Hamid Khan suggested the court decide the amendment case first before hearing the rest.
Justice Mandokhail stated that such arguments should be made when the 26th Amendment case was taken up. He assured that the matter would be scheduled as per available court dates.
Later, senior lawyer Makhdoom Ali Khan commenced his arguments, stating that the Peshawar High Court had issued its decision on March 14, 2024, followed by a short order from the Supreme Court on July 12. Review petitions started arriving by July 18, and the detailed verdict was released on September 23. He added that the 26th Constitutional Amendment was passed on October 21, and at that time, Article 191-A was not part of the Constitution. Thus, review petitions were filed under Article 188.
Justice Mandokhail remarked that political cases would continue indefinitely and emphasized the need to set clear principles for ordinary litigants.
Makhdoom Ali Khan argued that until new rules are formed, the Practice and Procedure Act’s Section 2-A and Article 191-A require that a constitutional bench hearing such matters must consist of at least five judges. He addressed concerns about the 13-member bench composition, stating that although two judges had written dissenting opinions, they had not formally recused themselves and even requested their votes not be counted.
The court then adjourned further hearing of the reserved seats review petitions until 11:30 AM on Thursday.
