The Supreme Court on Tuesday said that the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly cannot carry out the audit of the apex judiciary as according to Article 68 of the constitution, parliament cannot discuss the conduct of judges.
According to a report presented to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Tuesday, three existing and twelve retired judges of the Supreme Court received two residential plots each worth millions of rupees in expensive sectors of the federal capital. The Supreme Court (SC) refused to provide audit report details to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) saying the parliament cannot review judges’ conduct.
This was said in a reply written by the Registrar Supreme Court to the Chairman Public Accounts Committee with the consent of full court bench of the Supreme Court in which it is mentioned that the constitution prohibits PAC to call any official including the registrar of the apex judiciary, however the president, being the head of the state, has the authority to decide about the consultative sphere of the Supreme Court, so the committee should consult the President of Pakistan.
‘If the committee is interested in a formal court order, it should approach the president,’ the letter said.
The letter referred to Article 68 which said: “No discussion shall take place in [Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament)] with respect to the conduct of any Judge of the Supreme Court or of a High Court in the discharge of his duties”. The PAC, during the chairmanship of Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, had sent the letter to the SC asking for the audit report. The NA body, under the instructions of present Chairman Nadeem Afzal Chan, made the letter public it received recently that had been issued by the SC’s full court.
According to the PAC report, as many as 21 judges of the apex court, including Justice (r) Khalilur Rehman Ramday, and around 214 bureaucrats received residential plots in G-12 and G-13 sectors of Islamabad. Justice Ramday was among 15 judges of the higher judiciary and around 56 bureaucrats who received two plots each in Islamabad. The Capital Development Authority (CDA) presented lists of 21 judges before the committee, saying all judges who acquired one or more plots in Islamabad were either sitting or retired judges of the SC. The lists showed that around 15 judges acquired two or more plots in Islamabad. The name of judges who received residential plots include Justice (r) Mansoor Ahmed, Justice Muhammad Nawaz Abbasi, Justice Faqir Muhammad Khokhar, Justice Muhammad Javed Buttar, Justice Syed Ashad, Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, Justice Sardar Muhammad Raza Khan, Justice Mian Shakirullah Jan, Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, Justice Javed Iqbal, Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday, Justice Falak Sher, Justice Nasirul Mulk, Justice Raja Fayyaz Ahmed, Justice Syed Jamshed Ali, Justice Ghulam Rabbani, Justice Syed Zahid Hussain, Justice Chaudhary Ijaz Ahmed, Justice Mohammed Sair Ali, Justice Anwar Zaheer Ali and Justice Khliji Arif Hussain. Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry did not receive any plot, according to the list. The PAC chairman said the judge’s plots issue resembled the NRO case.
Doesn't look good for the judges. If judiciary is going to portray themselves as pious then their conduct should be beyond reproach. Accepting plots puts a question mark on their integrity and impartiality.
I hope CJ lets judges be accountable, otherwise all built so far will be lost.
For keeping the parliament on the straight and narrow, judges need to prove they are clean & no law should provide safety to the corrupt & those who have done others wrong.
I am hating democracy more and more by the day. Bring a dictator, one who can hang them all in one morning.
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Who put together the article 68? who's brainchild? Just curious …
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our judiciary has become joke supereme court issue order mushraf can be elected in uniform is rule allow they order mushraf can amend in rules is it correct supreme court judges can take two plots in islamabab is it correct
Time is ripe to scratch this article and replace it with these words '' If a judge of a superior court is found guilty he should be sent to either Iran or Saudi Arabia for final judgment''.
While I agree that it doesn't look good for the judges, I still feel that they are right to refuse a national assembly made up of these corrupt morons oversight of judicial matters.
The politicians better clean out there own house (knee neck deep in it) before starting to clean out someone elses
Why not ask judges to come out clean before they get the right to question others? Such judges have no right to sit in judgement.
Why can't the judges be judged?
Judges are above the law. They appoint themselves. They over rule elected parliament. They execute and dismiss elected Prime Ministers. They validate Martial Laws and support establishment in their adventures. They persecute Bhuttos & Zardari PPP but spare Sharifs PML (N). They go after corrupt son f politicians but spare their own son, terming it as a conspiracy against the Judiciary.
They interfere in the domain of parliament, election commission and executive but don't allow others to scrutinize the double plots allotted to them.
These judges should be ashamed of their conduct. Hang them!!!
Notwithstanding Article 68, it is unwise of judiciary to claim immunity; those sitting in glass houses should not throw stones at others.
Well timed & well said quote on glass houses.
Allah will decide. Injustice even at the hands of judges cannot go on. This is the lesson of history.
Pakistan's judges will be judged on the judgement day only
They are the real problem. We need to fire them all and bring in honest judiciary. If our judiciary is honest, most of our problems will be automatically solved. There is no justice in our country and a country without justice cannot survive. Justice does not mean the power to behave like a bull in a china shop. Justice means that it should be delivered to the common man. Pursuit of personal vendetta and minting money from litigants through their sons is total negation of justice. All of us who supported restoration of judiciary have no option but to hang our faces in shame.
I hope beyond hope the CJ is not involved, hes done so much for clean sweeping the country, yet the work has only just started, if he turns out corrupt, I cant imagine the disappointment…
Is there any law or institutional service benefit that allows them to buy a plot on controlled rate with respect to their position like they have in army? If yes then this does not fall into dishonesty provided it is only one plot and they do not own another else where in their or someone else name.
Supreme Court has role to play and it should play but if it crosses line it has to told so.
Now is time for all political parties to show leadership and tell judges of superior court are not above the law. if judges try to capitalse on the rfit between the political leadership and benefit fromt he scarcity of visionary leadership shame on them.
The king is above the law. It is called Iftikhar Merasi Doctrine.
pakistan judges are above law their sons are also above law awam 2 plots ka hasab mangti ha
the site managers of the Pakistan Today biased and cheats. They only post those comments which suits their policy which to malign judiciary in whatever way they can. This reflects their cooperation Zardari PPP govt and they are hand in glove with them to bring disrespect to judiciary
Now the judge bashing saeson has begun. I wonder what next .
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