The sword is still hanging!

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Friday threw out the presidential reference against Justice Qazi Faez Isa, terming it 'invalid' and also withdrew a show-cause notice issued to the apex court judge last year by the Supreme Judicial Council. While the decision was hailed by a majority of legal wizards terming it a landmark judgement, a few, however, expressed reservations, saying that the matter may be far from over.

Supreme Court Bar Association President Hafiz Abdur Rehman Ansari 'highly appreciated' the verdict and commended it for 'its courageous demonstration guarding its independence [and] thus upholding the prime objective of the rule of law and supremacy of the constitution'.

Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) Vice Chairman Abid Saqi said that the verdict has 'frustrated the nefarious and ill-motivated move of the government to subdue and pressurise the independent judiciary'. The PBC also announced that all bar members will observe Youm-e-Tashakkur (day of gratefulness) on June 22. They will also celebrate what the council termed a 'landmark judgement and the victory of the cause of the rule of law, the constitutionalism and independence of the judiciary'.

Zahid F Ebrahim, an advocate of the Supreme Court, said that while the court has...