Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry has declined to preside over the bench hearing petitions against the candidacy and re-election of President Musharraf for next five-year term.
In his ruling, the CJ said "The judicial propriety requires that I should not sit in the Bench hearing petitions involving election of the incumbent President of Pakistan being holder of two offices."
The petitioners had on Wednesday requested the 11-member bench, already hearing the petitions, that full Supreme Court, including the Chief Justice, should hear these important constitutional petitions. Presiding Judge Justice Javed Iqbal referred the application of the petitioners to the CJP for his decision, and adjourned the hearing for indefinite period.
In his orders issued on Wednesday evening the CJP said: "In view of order passed by Bench-II, request of the petitioners has been considered once again. Meanwhile, the Registrar has also enquired from Hon'ble Mr Justice Falek Sher, who has expressed his inability to be a member of the Bench hearing the listed petitions, as according to him he has already expressed his opinion on merits in Constitution Petition No 58 of 2007, etc same is the position of Hon'ble Mr Justice Mian Shakirullah January.
While Hon'ble Mr Justice Rana Bhagwandas is out of country being on ex-Pakistan leave and Hon'ble Mr Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk is proceeding abroad on official commitment on 20th morning, whereas Hon'ble Mr Justice Saiyed Saeed Ashhad is on medical leave.
"As far as the undersigned is concerned, I feel that the judicial propriety requires that he should not sit in the Bench hearing petitions involving election of the incumbent President of Pakistan being holder of two offices. "Therefore, the Bench already constituted may proceed with the matter from tomorrow ie 18th October 2007 to dispose of the case accordingly."
Earlier, the 11-member bench comprising Justice Javed Iqbal, Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday, Justice Mohammad Nawas Abbasi, Justice Faqir Mohammad Khokhar, Justice M. Javed Buttar, Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, Justice Raja Fayyaz Ahmad, Justice Chaudhry Ejaz Ahmad, Justice Jamshed Ali and Justice Ghulam Rabbani resumed the hearing which was adjourned on October 5, a day before the presidential election.
Hamid Khan, counsel for presidential candidate Wajihuddin Ahmad, argued that four out of nine judges had accepted their contention that General Musharraf was not qualified to contest the 2007 Presidential elections. He said that those four Judges had opted not to sit on this bench while the five Judges who had not given a verdict in their favour were present on this bench.
He said the petitioners were not expressing no-confidence in these five judges. If all the 16 Judges of the Supreme Court hear their petitions it would be a judicial propriety. As per CJ's orders, the 11-member bench will hear the petitions on Thursday.