ISLAMABAD: Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif on Tuesday has asked Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial to “distance himself” from hearing the audio leaks case to ensure that “true justice is served to the aggrieved.”
He was referring to a five-member bench order of the apex court, headed by the chief justice, which stayed the proceedings on various petitions challenging the constitution of the judicial commission formed by the federal government, tasked to inquire about the veracity of audio leaks allegedly involving the SC judge and a relative of the top judge.
The commission was headed by the most senior judge of the Supreme Court after the CJP, Justice Qazi Faez Isa. It also compromised of Islamabad High Court Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Balochistan High Court Chief Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan.
Speaking on the National Assembly floor, the defence minister expressed his opinion on the ‘wedge between the judiciary and the parliament’ continuing for more than a year, creating political unrest in the country.
He reiterated the government had only intended by constituting the judicial commission, which included the members of the judiciary, to ensure transparency in court’s proceedings.
Khawaja Asif regretted that the Apex Court Chief Justice scuttled the senior judge of the Supreme Court and the chief justice of the Balochistan High Court from the Commission. “We had not appointed members of the Parliament or someone outside the judiciary in the commission to probe audio leaks,” the minister added.
