A three-member bench of the Supreme Court (SC) headed by Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jilani on Tuesday accepted for hearing an application by National Assembly Opposition Leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali against the appointment of National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Chairman Admiral (r) Fasih Bokhari, and directed the case to the chief justice for establishment of a larger bench. Akram Sheikh, counsel for the opposition leader, argued that appointment of the NAB chairman was a matter of public importance for which consultation between the prime minister and the opposition leader had been laid down as a pre-requisite in the constitution. Asma Jehangir, counsel for the NAB chairman, asserted that application against the appointment of the NAB chairman could not directly be filed in the apex court. Attorney General Irfan Qadir submitted that important legal points were involved in the case and therefore it deserved to be heard by a larger bench. The court issued notices to the NAB chairman and the attorney general for submission of their replies.
