SC holds judgement on former IHC judge Siddiqui’s appeal of his dismissal

Chief Justice says, “Half the judiciary will go home if a judge is removed for giving a speech.”

ISLAMABAD: In response to an appeal by former Islamabad High Court judge Shaukt Aziz Siddiqui contesting his removal from the position, the Supreme Court postponed its decision on Tuesday.

Proceedings on the plea were held by a five-member bench consisting of Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi, and Justice Irfan Saadat Khan, under the leadership of Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa.

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Following the verdict’s reservation, CJP Isa ruled out the order for today’s open court proceedings.

The written ruling asked the parties involved in the case to address issues brought up during the court hearings.

The SC also questioned if the SJC carried out an investigation in the order.

“What would happen if the investigation wasn’t conducted in accordance with the law and the Constitution?” the directive said.

The former judge has already attained the age of superannuation, which is June 30, 2021, as per the court’s ruling mentioning his date of retirement.

Read More: The speech is not the issue; rather, it is the text: In the dismissal case of Shaukat Siddiqui, CJP Isa remarks

The SC posed the following queries in its order:

Should Shaukat Siddiqui’s appeal be granted, what kind of relief would be granted?

Is it possible for the Supreme Court to return the case to the Supreme Judicial Council?

If council action is not necessary, is the judge’s speech itself not in violation of the code of conduct?

The parties were given three weeks by the court to turn in their responses to the aforementioned inquiries.

It said, “The Supreme Court may take further judicial action if necessary.”