Islamabad (Sep 13, 2017): The Supreme Court resumed hearing of the review petitions filed by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his children and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar against the apex court’s July 28 verdict.
A five-member larger bench resumed hearing of the petition seeking the apex court to review its decision in Panamagate, disqualification Nawaz Sharif and ordering NAB to file reference against the Sharif family.
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The larger bench is headed by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa and is comprised Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, Justice Gulzar Ahmed, Justice Ejazul Ahsan and Justice Azamt Saeed Sheikh.
At present, Nawaz Sharif counsel Khawaja Harris is advancing arguments before the bench.
Counsel for Nawaz’s children and son-in-law, Salman Akram Raja and others are also present in the courtroom.
On Tuesday, the three-member bench while accepting Sharif family peal for constitution of five-member bench to hear the petitions had referred the matter to Chief Justice of Pakistan.
Later, the CJ constituted five-member bench to heard the pleas.
All five judges were part of the Panamagate case bench that disqualified Nawaz and ordered the filing of corruption cases against the others.
During hearing of the plea by the Sharifs for the formation of a larger bench on Tuesday, Raja had pleaded the three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Ejaz and comprising Justice Azmat and Justice Ahsan, to form a five-member bench to hear their review petitions.
He had also pleaded that their review petition against the judgment of the five-member bench be taken up first.
On August 15, the former prime minister filed three petitions in the Supreme Court seeking the court to review the Panama Papers verdict.
The petitions pleaded the apex court to dismiss the petitions filed by Sheikh Rasheed, Imran Khan and Siraj-ul-Haq.
The former prime minister, through his petition, argued that the decision passed by the court on July 28 should have been passed by a three-member bench as Justice Asif Saeed Khosa and Justice Gulzar Ahmed’s jurisdiction had expired after their dissenting judgment on April 20.
“That by signing the Final Order of the Court dated 28.07.2017, the hon’ble two Members of the “Bench” have actually passed two final Judgments in the same case, which is unprecedented in judicial history,” said the appeal.
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