The Supreme Court (SC) reserved on Monday its verdict on a set of pleas challenging the Supreme Court (Review of Judgments and Orders) Act 2023.

The Supreme Court (Review of Judgements and Orders) Bill 2023 was passed by the National Assembly on April 15 and is aimed at giving right of appeal under Article 184 of the constitution – a right which was not available in the past.

The bill states that a review petition may be filed within 60 days of the passing of the original order.

On Monday, a three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, and comprising Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Munib heard the petitions against the newly-enacted Act passed by the National Assembly as well as Election Commission of Pakistan’s petition against an April ruling directing the government to hold polls for the Punjab Assembly on May 14.

During the hearing, Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman Awan and PTI lawyer Ali Zafar concluded their arguments in the case after which the top court reserved its verdict.

Awan in his arguments said that under Article 188, the court has the power to review a judgement and for that no limit has been fixed.

He added that cases and reviews under Article 184(3) should not be treated as the same.

Article 184(3) of the Constitution grants the top court powers to issue an order if it considers a question of public importance with reference to the enforcement of fundamental rights involved.