The Supreme Court (SC) issued on Friday notices to former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) director-general Faiz Hamid in a case related to the removal of Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui as a judge of the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
A five-member bench, led by CJP Qazi Faez Isa and comprising Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi and Justice Irfan Saadat Khan, conducted proceedings.
Retired brigadiers Irfan Ramay, former IHC chief justice Anwar Khan Kasi and Arbab Muhammad Arif, a former registrar of the Supreme Court,, were also issued notices.
During the previous hearing, the bench pointed out to the petitioners that allegations made in the speech and the replies by Siddiqui implicate, directly or indirectly, certain former officers of the Pakistan Army and the ISI.
It said it is just and proper that they be personally impleaded in the instant petition so as to allow them an opportunity of hearing regarding the said allegations prior to any order that may be passed herein that may directly or indirectly affect them.
The chief justice told the lawyers of Siddiqui and the Islamabad Bar Association (IBA) that serious allegations have been levelled against some personalities who were not present before them, adding those accused in the case must be made parties.
The former judge was removed vide notification issued by President Arif Alvi on October 11-10-2019 upon the recommendation of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) for making a speech to the Rawalpindi Bar Association on July 21, 2018.
SC adjourns former judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui’s plea against removal
In his speech, he blamed the higher judiciary for the country’s ‘deplorable’ state of affairs.
In 2019, the IHC ex-judge had challenged the SJC report and the President’s order in the SC.
The former IHC judge stated he was discriminated against for making a public speech while the worthy chairman of the SJC (ex-CJP Saqib Nisar) went on making speeches, addressing Bar Council, attending conventions and meeting members of the armed forces, including the Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Air Staff and even declaring that whole judiciary was incompetent.
Shaukat stated that he only pointed out interference by some elements in the administration of justice.