ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Shahbaz Gill on Thursday filed an application with the Member Inspection Team (MIT) of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) and sought disciplinary action or proceedings against Zeba Chaudhry, Additional Sessions Judge, Islamabad (West) for ‘commission of misconduct’.
The PTI leader moved the application through his brother Muhammad Yaseen Gill and requested the MIT that action be initiated against the judge for commission of misconduct by her by way of “acting incompetently, negligently and partially by violating code of conduct of a Judge, judicial norms, express provisions of law and patently settled principles of law on the subject while granting physical remand of applicant Muhammad Shahbaz Shabeer Gill vide order dated 17-08-2022 in absence of the accused.”
The application said that the petitioner is real brother of Muhammad Shahbaz Shabeer Gill, a political activist and staff officer of Imran Khan, chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), accused of case FIR No691/2022, dated 09-08-2022, offence under sections 124-A/120/131/ 153/ 153-A/505/506/121-B/109/34 PPC, Police Station, Kohsar, District Islamabad.
It added that the petitioner was arrested on 09-08-2022 and produced before the learned Area Magistrate, Islamabad on 10-08-2022, who allowed the request of the investigation officer (IO) for grant of physical remand of the detenue/ accused for two days till 12-08-2022 when he was again produced with another request for his further physical remand which was declined by the learned Area Magistrate, vide order dated 12-08-2022 then agitated by the State before the Sessions Court, Islamabad (West) through a criminal revision petition which was declined on the short ground of maintainability but the order was set aside by the IHC and the matter was remanded for a fresh decision of criminal revision petition on merits.
The application said that at this stage in the reference/ remand order of the IHC, the revision petition on the subject of physical remand of the detenue/ accused was heard and decided by the then learned Duty Additional Sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhry on 17-08-2022 in grave violation and derogation of judicial norms, express provisions of law i.e. section 167 read with sections 435, 439 and 439-A CrPC and patently settled principles of law on the subject of grant of physical remand of an accused.
He adopted the stance that the said act of conducting the proceedings by the learned ASJ (Zeba Chaudhry) is amounting to gross misconduct, illegality and malafide intention committed by her since based on her grave incompetence, glaring negligence and noticeable partiality, violating the code of conduct of a Judge, therefore, not covered under the umbrella of good faith or indemnity provided for the protection of a Judicial Officer, hence, calling for the cognizance of the Islamabad High Court, on administrative side for disciplinary action against the delinquent judicial officer.
He argued that the learned ASJ while proceeding as revisional court has illegally and malafidely crossed the limits of jurisdiction of her court by stepping into the shoes of the Area Magistrate because while sitting as a revisional court that was only empowered to question the viries of the impugned physical remand declining order of the accused and in case of setting aside the same to direct the Area Magistrate for deciding the said question afresh.
He asserted that the additional District Judge Zeba Chaudhry is closely affiliated with the political ruling party and her husband is former MPA of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and a ticket holder and these facts can also get endorsement from the different social media posts by the husband of the additional district judge Zeba Chaudhry and therefore order and judgment was passed under the influence by violating the basic principal of law and the petitioner brother who was in judicial custody but she was least bother to protect the rights of the accused which are guaranteed under the law of and constitution of Islamic republic of Pakistan.
Gill contended that the medical report of Adiyala jail also indorse the physical and mental torture. He added that the petitioner brother is a political leader of the opponent party PTI, therefore, it was the primary duty of the Additional District judge Zeba Chaudhry, under the norms and procedure that she should refuse to hear case of the petitioner brother.
He claimed that but she without any reason passed the order in a hurried manner and while deciding the question of physical remand of the accused/ detenue the learned ASJ has shown her ignorance of the law by totally disregarding the provisions of section 167 CrPC which repeatedly demands the presence of accused forwarded by the police and at the same time she failed to take the notice of the relevant provisions on the subject of Criminal Revision i.e. sections, 435, 439 and 439-A CrPC which shows that the learned ASJ lacks the knowledge of even fundamental provisions of the criminal law on the subject.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022
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