The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked Federal Ombudsperson for Protection against Harassment of Women at Workplace Yasmin Abbasi to arrange a counsel to plead that under which legal authority she was competent to issue arrest warrants for a sitting judge of Lahore High Court.
Taking a suo motu notice over the issuance of arrest warrants by Yasmin Abbasi to a serving judge of the LHC, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah on May 12, 2016, Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali dismissed the arrest warrants and issued a notice to Abbasi and Attorney General for Pakistan to appear before the court. Yasmin Abbasi appeared in person before a three-member bench of Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, claiming that she was being deprived of her right of hearing in the current matter. She contended that she had filed a review petition about changing of counsel in the case but her petition was returned on May 17, 2016.
She raised an objection and requested the court to let her know about the competent authority that had returned a review petition without allotting it a number. Justice Amir Hani Muslim said that the Registrar of the apex court had returned her review petition. While she repeatedly contended that her right of hearing was being declined the Chief Justice asked her to explain under which legal authority she was competent to issue arrest warrants for a sitting judge of Lahore High Court.
On her failure to respond to the court's query, the Chief Justice started to dictate order in the case, saying Yasmin Abbasi is avoiding to contest the case and is granted one week's time to arrange a counsel to plead her case. Abbasi said she is not avoiding the court; she was just submitting that without engaging a counsel she cannot respond to the court's query. Meanwhile, amending its order, the court asked her to engage a counsel by July 13. Yasmin Abbasi said: "This is not the way. This is not justice. Is it Supreme Court? Justice is buried here."