CJP to decide composition of bench in Isa case.

Byline: Nasir Iqbal

ISLAMABAD -- A six-member bench of the Supreme Court on Monday released its determination on a set of review petitions moved by Justice Qazi Faez Isa, his wife Sarina Isa and others and directed the court office to place them before the chief justice to issue directives for the constitution of a bench as deemed appropriate.

In a 28-page order, the apex court, which had reserved its ruling on Dec 10 to adjudicate if the present six-judge bench or a larger bench to determine the set of petitions seeking review in the Justice Isa case, held that its review jurisdiction could be invoked against majority and unanimous judgements only (and not against any dissenting notes).

Headed by Justice Umar Ata Bandial, the six-judge bench referred the matter to Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed, a master of court roster, to determine the composition of a bench - in view of the settled practice - as he may constitute a larger bench for hearing the review petitions.

The petitioners had raised the plea that all the three judges - AAJustice Maqbool Baqar, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Yahya Afridi, who had dissented from the majority judgement - were not made part of the bench that would hear the review petitions.

Review jurisdiction can be invoked against majority and unanimous judgements only, says SC order

In its order released on Monday, the court held that for the purpose of Order 26, Rule 8 of the Supreme Court Rules (SCR) 1980, the minimum numerical strength of the bench that delivered the judgement or order under review was the numerical strength of the bench, which heard and decided the original matter regardless of whether the judgement under review was passed unanimously or by majority.

And the review bench should comprise the author judge, if still on the court as its member and in case he is unavailable, then any other judge who agreed with the...