{"id":51358,"date":"2024-01-23T09:26:08","date_gmt":"2024-01-23T09:26:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/making-a-speech-is-anybodys-right-says-cjp-while-hearing-ex-judge-shaukat-azizs-plea-against-removal\/"},"modified":"2024-01-23T09:26:08","modified_gmt":"2024-01-23T09:26:08","slug":"making-a-speech-is-anybodys-right-says-cjp-while-hearing-ex-judge-shaukat-azizs-plea-against-removal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/making-a-speech-is-anybodys-right-says-cjp-while-hearing-ex-judge-shaukat-azizs-plea-against-removal\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Making a speech is anybody\u2019s right,\u2019 says CJP while hearing ex-judge Shaukat Aziz\u2019s plea against removal"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div dir=\"auto\">\n<p>Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa on Tuesday observed that giving a speech was \u201canybody\u2019s right\u201d as the Supreme Court heard a petition filed by former Islamabad High Court senior puisne judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui against his removal.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs a judge not allowed to make a speech? I think we should not forget the fact. [\u2026] If the fact was making the speech, then half of the judiciary will have to go home,\u201d CJP Isa remarked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMaking a speech is your right, anybody\u2019s right,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n<p>The remarks were made as a five-member bench \u2014 led by CJP Isa and including Justice Aminuddin Khan, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi, and Justice Irfan Saadat \u2014 resumed hearing Siddiqui\u2019s plea. The proceedings are being broadcast live on the SC\u2019s <a rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"link--external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov.pk\/court-proceedings\/\">website<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media  w-full  w-full  media--stretch  media--embed  \">\n<p><div class=\"ast-oembed-container \" style=\"height: 100%;\"><iframe title=\"Supreme Court Live Proceedings 23-01-2024\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0uJCcKIlC_I?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The judge had challenged a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1438358\">decision<\/a> of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) about his dismissal from service and an Oct 11, 2018 notification under which he was removed for a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1421562\">speech<\/a> he had delivered at Rawalpindi Bar Association.<\/p>\n<p>In his speech, Justice Siddiqui had accused the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of influencing the court proceedings and forming benches of choice.<\/p>\n<p>A day earlier, former ISI director general retired Lt Gen Faiz Hameed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1807875\/ex-spymaster-gen-faiz-hameed-denies-role-in-constitution-of-benches\">submitted his response<\/a> to Justice Siddiqui\u2019s petition. In his response, he rejected the allegations of his involvement in the constitution of IHC benches to prolong the detention of former premier Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media  sm:w-1\/2  w-full  media--right  media--embed  media--uneven\">\n<p>    <iframe class=\"nk-iframe\" onload=\"setInterval(()=&gt;{try{this.style.height=this.contentWindow.document.body.scrollHeight+'px';}catch{}}, 100)\" width=\"100%\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" style=\"height:400px;position:relative\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/card\/1807875\" sandbox=\"allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-popups allow-modals allow-forms\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The ex-spymaster claimed Justice Siddiqui had dragged him into the case for no reason.<\/p>\n<p>In the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1798089\">previous hearing<\/a>, notices had been issued to Gen Hameed, retired brigadier Irfan Ramay, former IHC chief justice Anwar Khan Kasi and former SC registrar Arbab Muhammad Arif.<\/p>\n<p>Siddiqui had nominated seven individuals in his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1797964\">amended plea<\/a>, however, the court remarked that three others \u2014 former chief of army staff Qamar Javed Bajwa, and two retired brigadiers Faisal Marwat and Tahir Wafai \u2014 had no direct connection with the case.<\/p>\n<p>During the hearing, Khawaja Haris appeared as Gen Hameed\u2019s and brigadier Ramay\u2019s counsel while Wasim Sajjad was present as Justice Kasi\u2019s lawyer. Hamid Khan appeared as the petitioner\u2019s counsel.<\/p>\n<h2><a id=\"the-hearing\" href=\"#the-hearing\" class=\"heading-permalink\" aria-hidden=\"true\" title=\"Permalink\"\/>The hearing<\/h2>\n<p>At the outset of the hearing, Haris came to the rostrum and informed the court who he was representing.<\/p>\n<p>Justice Siddiqui\u2019s lawyer urged the court to conduct a \u201cfair inquiry\u201d of the matter, arguing that under Article 209(6) of the Constitution, the SJC could not present a report to the country\u2019s president without conducting an inquiry.<\/p>\n<p>When asked about the allegation against his client, Hamid answered it pertained to a speech and urged the court to quash the decision against Siddiqui.<\/p>\n<p>CJP Isa asked whether the ex-judge \u201cadmitted the allegations against him or rejected them\u201d, to which the lawyer replied that his client had denied all allegations levelled against him. The top judge then noted that former SC registrar Arbab had submitted his response as well.<\/p>\n<p>Hamid then asserted that the ex-registrar had said he had brought the matter to the notice of then-IHC chief justice Kasi, whose lawyer then came to the rostrum.<\/p>\n<p>The chief justice then asked how the case should proceed ahead, to which Hamid said: \u201cThe submitted responses have made my case clear. The SJC had not conducted any inquiry. If there had been an inquiry, witnesses would have appeared [and] cross-examination would have been allowed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The counsel then requested that the order to remove the former judge be declared unlawful.<\/p>\n<p>At this, the CJP observed that according to Attorney General of Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman Awan, a factual inquiry\u201c had not been conducted, wondering how the five-member SC bench could then decide on the case.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat would happen if [\u2026] it is not determined whether the allegations are false or true?\u201d Justice Isa asked, noting that the claims were made in public. \u201cWill the decision of the judge\u2019s removal be maintained if the allegations are proven false?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In response, Hamid said that the decision against his client should first be set aside and then a commission should be constituted to conduct an inquiry.<\/p>\n<p>CJP Isa then asked if the matter could be referred back to the SJC, to which the ex-judge\u2019s lawyer replied in the affirmative.<\/p>\n<p>At this point during the hearing, Justice Mandokhail said, \u201cLet\u2019s assume that the allegations (made by Siddiqui) are true but was it appropriate for a judge to make such a statement? You have not denied making the speech.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The chief justice also wondered, \u201cIs any judge allowed to make such a speech?\u201d, at which Hamid acknowledged that the speech could not be denied.<\/p>\n<p>Justice Mandokhail again wondered if Siddiqui\u2019s conduct as a judge was \u201cappropriate\u201d while Justice Isa noted that a speech could be of \u201ctwo kinds\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs a judge not allowed to make a speech? I think we should not forget the fact. [\u2026] If the fact was making the speech, then half of the judiciary will have to go home,\u201d the top judge remarked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt is not the question of mere making of the speech. It is the content of the speech,\u201d he observed, adding that if allegations were made in the speech or a \u201cvicious or loaded attack\u201d was launched, the two elements could not be \u201cdisconnected\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMaking a speech is your right, anybody\u2019s right,\u201d CJP Isa stated, before giving examples of judges in Britain giving interviews to the media and those in the United States participating in debates.<\/p>\n<p>The chief justice asked if the case could be remanded back to the SJC, to which Haris, Gen Hameed\u2019s lawyer, replied in the negative. He said that Siddiqui had retired as a judge and could not be restored to the role, therefore, the SJC could no longer review the matter.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf the Supreme Judicial Council\u2019s recommendation is set aside, then the allegations would be deemed true,\u201d Justice Isa remarked. Haris then contended that \u201cno allegation\u201d was made against Gen Hameed either during the speech or before the SJC.<\/p>\n<p>The lawyer further said that the SJC had noted that the former judge had \u201cdishonoured the judiciary\u201d. To this, CJP Isa wondered, \u201cWhere did the matter of dishonouring the judiciary come from?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>When Haris argued that the judge should not have made a public speech, the chief justice asked him what article of the SC\u2019s code of conduct Siddiqui had allegedly violated and told him to read the code of conduct for judges.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA judge should not get into public and political controversies,\u201d Gen Hameed\u2019s counsel asserted, insisting that the \u201cjudiciary was ridiculed in the speech\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe speech could also be seen as an indicator instead of for publicity,\u201d the top judge remarked. When asked what should a judge do in case there was corruption in an institution, the lawyer said they should inform the CJP. At this, Justice Isa said that there should be \u201csome criteria for accepting a chief justice\u2019s statement and for not accepting another\u2019s\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe nation has endured enough now. Our concern is related to the institution\u2019s reputation. The nation should know the truth,\u201d the chief justice remarked.<\/p>\n<p>CJP Isa once again asked how the matter should proceed, at which Haris urged the court to take a suo motu notice. \u201cThe nation should also know whether the allegations are true or false. The institutions are for serving the public,\u201d the top judge said.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media  sm:w-1\/2  w-full  media--right  media--embed  media--uneven\">\n<p>    <iframe class=\"nk-iframe\" onload=\"setInterval(()=&gt;{try{this.style.height=this.contentWindow.document.body.scrollHeight+'px';}catch{}}, 100)\" width=\"100%\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" style=\"height:400px;position:relative\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/card\/1805440\" sandbox=\"allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-popups allow-modals allow-forms\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>At this point during the hearing, it emerged that the federal government challenged the Afiya Shehrbano Zia verdict, which held that judges who retire or resign do not fall within the ambit of Article 209 of the Constitution determining misconduct of superior court judges.<\/p>\n<p>Here, AGP Awan urged the apex court to hear the appeal along with the current case.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<p><em>More to follow<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa on Tuesday observed that giving a speech was \u201canybody\u2019s right\u201d as the Supreme Court heard a petition filed by former Islamabad High Court senior puisne judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui against his removal. \u201cIs a judge not allowed to make a speech? I think we should not forget [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":51359,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/i.dawn.com\/large\/2024\/01\/23120343aa020a9.png?r=123448","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-51358","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pakistan"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51358","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51358"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51358\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/51359"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51358"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51358"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51358"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}