After it received a notice from Supreme Court in Reko Diq case, Tethyan Copper Company Australia (TCCA) requested for the grant of time to file a reply in the case. A three-member bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice Khilji Arif Hussain and Justice Tariq Parvez heard a civil petition of Maulana Abdul Haq Baloch and others pertaining to Reko Diq case.
The court while accepting the plea expected that the TCCA would not proceed further in international arbitration till the disposal of the Reko Diq case in Pakistan. Khalid Anwar, the counsel for TCCP, said that according to the Hague Convention, the SC could not pass any order to stall proceedings of international arbitration. Upon this, the CJP observed that the court had not issued any restraining order in this regard. On the request of TCCA, the court adjourned the hearing for 15 days.
It is worth mentioning that on the plea of Balochistan government, International Chamber of Commerce in London had allowed a period of 15 days for the nomination of arbitrators in Reko Diq case. Its deadline is ending on March 14. On March 2, Secretary (Minerals) Balochistan rejected the plea of Tethyan Copper Company Pakistan (TCCP) Limited for acquiring a mining licence.