SC adjourns hearing in ZAB'S reference on request of Aitzaz

ISLAMABAD

The Supreme Court on Monday put off hearing till date in office on the pending presidential reference, seeking a revisit of Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's murder case, late founder of Pakistan Peoples Party who also served the country as first democratically elected Prime Minister.

A nine-member bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry,

Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, Justice Nasir ul Mulk, Justice Tariq Parvez,Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmani, Justice Amir Hani Muslim, Justice Gulzar Ahmed and Justice Sh. Azmat Saeed deferred proceedings on a Presidential reference sent to apex Court under Article 186 invoking its advisory jurisdiction.

During course of proceedings, the bench was apprised that Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan, counsel for the referring authority, had submitted an adjournment plea as he was in Karachi to attend funeral ceremony of late Iqbal Haider, senior advocate of the Supreme Court.

The bench accepted his plea and told his assistant Ali Gohar that they had received a letter from the referring authority nominating Aitzaz Ahsan as counsel in the pleading but they would require an acceptance from the counsel as well because he would no longer appear as amicus curiae in the case.The Chief Justice told him that they would nominate some other lawyer from Punjab province in his place as 'friend of the court'. While in related matter regarding temporary suspension of practicing license of Babar Awan, who previously appeared as counsel in ZAB's case, bench also deferred proceedings till date in office.

The bench in its order said that his application would be heard when the requisite bench of eleven members was constituted as his license suspension order was passed by the said bench. The bench also directed its office to put up the matter for constitution of the required bench. During proceedings, Babar Awan read out portion of 17th January order and complained that it was not the way that one of his application for early fixation of contempt matter was returned by the Registrar office after showing regret to entertain it.

He said that expression of regret was not a usual norm. About his another contempt issue before another two-Judge bench, he replied that it was still pending.