ISLAMABAD: As the new chief justice of Pakistan, Justice Qazi Faez Isa has fixed for hearing a petition filed against the judgement of the Supreme Court in Faizabad dharna (sit-in) which he had authored back in 2019, a number of petitioners have announced to withdraw their review pleas.
The review petitions were filed by the then ruling PTI, AML, Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) and Intelligence Bureau etc. The IB two two days back had said it was going to withdraw its cade while PEMRA moved the apex court gor taking back its petition on Wednesday.
A three-member bench led by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa and comprising Justice Aminuddin Khan and Justice Athar Minallah is set to take up the review petitions against the judgement in the Faizabad dharna cas on September 28.
In November 2017, a religious outfit called Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) staged a sit-in at Faizabad, Islamabad, for over three weeks against an alleged change to the oath of government functionaries.
The sit-in was called off after an agreement signed with the federal government under which among other concessions the then federal law minister Zahid Hamid resigned from his post.
Besides inconvenience to the public, the public exchequer faced losses worth millions of rupees as the protesters damaged public property.
The Supreme Court took suo motu notice and a two-member bench headed by Justice Mushir Alam and Justice Qazi Faez Isa heard the case and reserved its verdict on Nov 22 that year.
The judgement directed all the intelligence agencies to not exceed their respective mandates.
“They cannot curtail the freedom of speech and expression and do not have the authority to interfere with broadcasts and publications, in the management of broadcasters/publishers and in the distribution of newspapers.”
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