For the first time in Pakistan’s judicial history; Supreme Court proceedings have been broadcasted live
In a historic move, the Supreme Court of the country has allowed live telecast of proceedings for the first time ever. The full court, consisting of all 15 judges of the apex court, is currently conducting hearings on petitions challenging a controversial law known as the SC (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023. These petitions aim to regulate the suo motu powers of the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP), Qaez Faez Isa.
CJP Isa is leading the live broadcast of the hearing on state television PTV. The apex court has deemed these petitions seeking a full court hearing admissible. The entire bench made this decision during a meeting, as expressed by CJP Isa.
During today’s hearing, CJP Isa clarified that he had explicitly formed a new bench for these proceedings, which would result in the commencement of arguments in this case anew. He further noted that he had approved three applications to establish a full court.
Hearing
Ahead of today’s hearing, Mansoor Usman Awan, Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP), submitted an official response from the federal government regarding this matter. They made a request to reject these petitions against the Supreme Court Practice and Procedure Act in their response. It should be noted that in this context, petitions against acts passed by parliament are considered inadmissible.
The government’s response argued for the dismissal of the petitions against the Practice and Procedure Act.
According to sources, a decision was reached during a full court meeting prior to the proceedings. To facilitate this, courtroom number one had five cameras installed. Additionally, there were four cameras placed in the visitors’ gallery and one camera positioned at the lawyers’ rostrum in front of the judges’ docks.
The full court consisted of Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa along with Justice Sardar Tariq Masood, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Aminuddin Khan, Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi,Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhel ,Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar ,Justice Ayesha A. Malik ,Justice Athar Minallah .Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi.Justice Shahid Waheed Jusctice Musarrat Hilali Prior to this eventful day’s proceedings and discussions around guidelines for effective case hearings,a previous full court meeting took place to consider live broadcasting options.Relevant sources have confirmed that instructions for live broadcast commenced yesterday-just hours after CJP took oath as Judge.
After arriving at the Supreme Court without any official protocol, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Isa emphasized the importance of treating visitors as guests. He stated that people come to the court seeking solutions to their problems and it is crucial to keep the doors of justice open for them. CJP Isa’s personal car used for his arrival, highlighting his commitment to accessibility and approachability in serving the public.
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