The Supreme Court of Pakistan has ruled that the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023 did not infringe any fundamental rights but rather facilitated their enforcement. The detailed verdict, authored by Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa, explained why the top court upheld the law passed by the previous government. The judgment stated that the Constitution empowered Parliament to legislate and set the parameters for the apex court’s workings.
The case was one of the first orders of business taken up by CJP Isa upon entering office, and its proceedings before a full court bench were also the first to be live-streamed. The judgment also rejected the term “master of the roster” and argued that it was not mentioned in the Constitution, any law, or even in the Supreme Court Rules. Separately, an apex court bench turned down a request to immediately fix for hearing an appeal filed by PTI chief Imran Khan against his conviction in the Toshakhana case.
The bench noted that most judges were not available in Islamabad due to winter vacations. Imran’s appeal sought not only the suspension of the sentence but also the conviction itself, and there was no precedent in judicial history where both were suspended simultaneously.