ISLAMABAD: Justice Qazi Faez Isa asked the Supreme Court registrar to withdraw the circular dated March 31 immediately and to inform all those to whom it has been sent.

The senior puisne judge of the Supreme Court on Monday wrote a letter to the SC registrar and expressed his annoyance over it.

Registrar Ishrat Ali on March 31 disregarded the judgment of Justice Isa and Justice Aminuddin Khan regarding suo moto power exercised by the chief justice of Pakistan.

The letter maintained that the circular purports to negate, undo, disobey and violate order dated 29 March of three-judge bench, passed in suo moto case No 4 of 2022. The registrar does not have the power or authority to undo a judicial order, and the chief justice cannot issue administrative direction with regard thereto.

“Needless to say, as a senior officer you are expected to know what the Constitution stipulates, act in accordance therewith and abide by the decisions of the Supreme Court (Article 189).

“The circular refers to a decision of the Supreme Court (Suo Moto case No 4/2021, PLD 2022 Supreme Court 306); if you had read it you would have realized that it pertained to invoking power under Article 184(3) of the Constitution. However, in the subject case suo moto notice had not been taken by the bench before which it was listed for hearing on March 15, 23.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023