ISLAMABAD: Justice Qazi Faez Isa wants live telecast of the hearing of his review petition against the Presidential reference. Justice Isa, on Thursday, filed an application seeking public broadcast of hearings under Articles 19 and 19A of Constitution read with Order XXV Rule 6 and Order III Rule 6 of the Supreme Court Rules, 1980.

A 10-member larger bench, headed by Justice Umar Ata Bandial, and comprising Justice Maqbool Baqar, Justice Manzoor Ahmed Malik, Justice Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel, Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Qazi Muhammad Amin Ahmed, and Justice Aminud Din Khan, will hear Justice Isa’s and others’ review petitions against the Presidential reference from March 1st, 2021.

The apex court judge submitted that immediately after the president sent a reference against him to the Supreme Judicial Council, its contents were broadcast on television and published in newspapers.

He stated that an “unrelenting false propaganda” campaign was launched by the respondents (federal government) against him alleging that he had not complied with the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, did not pay income tax, had unaccounted for wealth, bought properties abroad in the names of his wife and children, had illegally transferred money abroad, and committed the crime of money laundering.

Justice Isa further submitted that this was done before he was provided with a copy of the Presidential reference, let alone having been given an opportunity to respond to these “unfounded” allegations.

Justice Isa stated that as a judge of the Supreme Court, he was handicapped, and unlike any other citizen, he could not hold a press conference to rebut or respond to the allegations.

“The official respondents, with their iron grip on the media, had also ensured that the contents of his filings were neither broadcast nor published.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021