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ISLAMABAD, Jun 27 (APP): The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Friday conducted hearing on the review petitions filed against its earlier ruling on the allocation of reserved seats and the verdict may be announced shortly.
An extended full court, originally comprising 13 judges and headed by Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan, heard the case. However, the bench was reduced to 12 members after Justice Salahuddin Panhwar recused himself at the outset of the hearing. Justice Panhwar cited objections raised by counsel for the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), Advocate Hamid Khan, regarding the inclusion of judges who joined the Supreme Court after the 26th Constitutional Amendment.
Explaining his decision, Justice Panhwar said, “Public trust in the judiciary is paramount. It is essential that no party questions the impartiality of the bench.” He added that he, too, was among the judges who joined post-amendment and thus deemed it appropriate to step aside.
Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail told the counsel, “You have ten minutes; either argue your case or sit down. Don’t assume we do not know how to enforce order in court.”
The debate turned toward the legality of the bench’s formation under Article 191A of the Constitution, with Hamid Khan arguing that the Judicial Commission forms benches under the 26th Amendment. Justice Mandokhail challenged the inconsistency, asking, “If you oppose the amendment, how can you simultaneously rely on it?”
The bench emphasized that all 13 judges in the previous ruling had unanimously held that the SIC had no claim to reserved seats. “This fact is being distorted to mislead the nation,” said Justice Mandokhail. “The correct legal facts must be brought forward.”
The Supreme Court had accepted the review petitions for hearing on May 6, 2025, and issued notices to all parties. However, Justices Ayesha Malik and Aqeel Abbasi dissented, terming the petitions inadmissible.
Later in the day, the Supreme Court dismissed Hamid Khan’s objection to the composition of the bench.
The case concerns review petitions filed against an earlier Supreme Court ruling that had overturned the decisions of the Election Commission and the Peshawar High Court, granting reserved seats to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) instead of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC).