Justice Qazi Faez Isa Case.

The honourable Supreme Court has passed its short-order in the Justice Qazi Faez Isa's case. And in the aftermath, a new debate concerning the ambit of judicial accountability, and its interaction with executive authority, has erupted across Pakistan. In order to better understand the issues involved, let us first take a deeper look at the order of the honourable Court.

The facts concerning Justice Isa's case, relating to his wife's properties in London, are all too familiar by now, and need no regurgitation. Suffice it to say that the government had filed a reference against Justice Isa, claiming that he was guilty of misconduct, under Article 209 of the Constitution, for failing to disclose properties in the name of Justice Isa's family members (in particular his wife); Justice Isa challenged this reference on the grounds that he cannot be held accountable for his (non-dependent) wife's properties, acquired through independent financial means. And that, in any case, this is a tax issue at best, and does not amount to 'misconduct', as envisioned in Article 209 of the Constitution. Most importantly, Justice Isa claimed that information against him had been collected through illegal means, and the reference had been framed on the basis of mala fide and malice, since he had irked certain 'powerful quarters' through a series of past judgments. The government, on the other hand, insisted that judicial accountability necessitates that Justice Isa account for his assets, and those of his immediate family members. And that the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) has the jurisdiction to inquire into the matter.

Through its short order, a 10-member bench of the honourable Court unanimously held that the pending reference against Justice Isa 'is declared to be of no legal effect whatsoever and stands quashed' and 'proceedings pending' before the SJC 'including the show-cause notice' stand abated. This, however, is the only point on which members of the bench were unanimous. Thereafter, a majority of seven judges (excluding Justice Maqbool Baqar, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, and Justice Yahya Afridi) directed that, since the issue at hand relates to tax (mis)declaration, the 'Commissioner of Inland Revenue' shall 'within 7 days' issue appropriate notices 'to the spouse and children' of Justice Isa, under the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 (ITO), requiring them 'to offer an explanation' concerning the 'source of the funds' for their properties.

Per para 6 of the...