ISLAMABAD: The Federal Constitutional Court has clarified that the registrar does not possess the authority to dismiss or reject constitutional petitions. Justice Hassan Azhar Rizvi delivered a detailed six-page ruling addressing concerns raised over Razia Aslam’s constitutional petition.
The court emphasized that only a judicial body has the power to assess the admissibility of a petition. It stated that the registrar’s role is purely administrative and that the registrar’s office can only raise procedural objections related to the filing process.
According to the ruling, the registrar’s office can return a petition solely if it violates established rules, but cannot exercise judicial discretion or declare a petition as frivolous or inadmissible on substantive grounds. The court underscored that there is no constitutional provision that grants administrative officers the authority to exercise judicial powers.
The judgment reinforced that delegating judicial authority to an administrative officer violates the constitutional separation of powers.
Previously, the registrar’s office had returned Razia Aslam’s petition on February 14, citing it as inadmissible. The petitioner subsequently filed a chamber appeal challenging the registrar’s objections.
