The federal government on Wednesday moved to Supreme Court (SC) praying to extend the deadline for appointment of Chairman and Prosecutor General (PG) of National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for another month.
The SC on June 21 while deciding the constitutional petition filed by Habib Wahab-ul-Khairi had asked the government to appoint NAB's chairman and prosecutor general within a month.
The court had further asked the Deputy Chairman NAB Javed Zia Qazi, who was holding additional charge of acting chairman NAB, to leave the charge without any delay.
"If in such an eventuality the NAB practically ceases to exist or function under the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999 then the blame for the same shall rest squarely on the shoulders of the Federal Government," the court had ruled in its detailed verdict.
As the deadline for implementation of the court's order is going of lapse on July 21, on Wednesday Additional Attorney General K. K. Agha submitted another petition in the apex court seeking one-month extension in the deadline.
Agha filed an application under rule 2(14) of order V rule 6 of the Supreme Court Rules 1980 for extension of time in implementing the court's verdict.
He contended that in the petition of opposition leader Chaudhary Nisar Ali Khan of March 10 the court declared appointment of former judge Deedar Hussain Shah as chairman NAB illegal against which Federation's counsel Abdul Hafeez Pirzada had filed a review petition which had not yet been taken up for hearing. "Pirzada is in the process of filing an application for early hearing of the review petition," he added.
Agha justified government's inability to appoint chairman and prosecutor general NAB, saying that the matter of the appointments was sub-judice before the court through the review petition.
Agha submitted that if the court's order were followed in Khairi's petition, the government had to initiate the process of appointment of chairman and prosecutor general NAB, adding that it would be very awkward and embarrassing situation for the government in case the court decide the review petition and restore Deedar Shah.
"The government will be in embarrassing position of having two chairmen NAB," Agha contended. To avoid any ambiguity the court may take up the review petition of federation and decide it at the earliest, Agha pleaded.
He prayed the apex court to grant one-month extension in the deadline for implementing the court's order of June 21.