PDM  leader and JUI chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has also joined the litany demanding Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Umar Ata Bandial to step down after the demand was made earlier by PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz and PPP Chairman and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.

Taking to his Twitter handle on Saturday, Maulana Fazl said: “The way Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial has divided the prestigious institution like the Supreme Court with his controversial decisions and the way he has put the country and the state in a crisis after pitting the supreme institution of the country against the Parliament, the only solution now lies in his resignation. He should resign now without any delay.”

On Friday, PML-N supremo tweeted: “Courts take nations out of crises and not push them into crises. The Chief Justice imposed a minority decision on the majority decision. The Chief Justice who has sullied his position and violated the constitution in order to further the PTI agenda, should resign immediately to stop the further rot.”

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto tweeted: “With Justice Minallah’s note we now have 4 justices on record. It is clear the CJs opinion is the minority judgement. The CJP & SC must act immediately to undo this unconstitutional bench fixing. This is only way the dignity of the Supreme Court can be resorted.

“The 3 member decision is not worth the paper it is written on. If the CJP cannot get his court in order and remedy this mockery of justice then perhaps he should allow someone else to take the responsibility of CJP.” Maryam Nawaz wrote: “No CJ has ever been accused of such misconduct. His tilt towards PTI is glaring. CJP Bandial must resign.”

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb said that the note of Justice Athar Minallah was a question mark on Supreme Court's proceedings in the Punjab polls case. Addressing a news conference in Islamabad on Friday, she demanded Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial to step down as his position has become controversial, especially after Justice Athar Minallah’s note in the case pertaining to elections in Punjab.

 "When there was no petition, questions arise as to why the bench was formed and why a decision was made," she said. The information minister said that the four judges on the bench had urged to make a full court bench, adding that the political parties were too in favour of constituting a full bench so the people could accept the decision.

"Political parties do not shy away from elections, but this is no longer just an election issue. It has become a matter of 'bench fixing'," she added. She said that CJP’s suo motu notice has already been dismissed with 4-3 vote. However, she added that a three-member bench was formed on a petition that was already "dismissed".

In a detailed judicial note in the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa elections case, Supreme Court Justice Athar Minallah on Friday called for exercising “extreme restraint” in entertaining political questions, since public trust is eroded when the court is perceived as politically partisan and its judges are seen as “politicians in robes”.

Justice Minallah was among the four judges who had earlier rejected the suo motu case along with Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Yahya Afridi and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhel. “All the institutions, including the Supreme Court, need to set aside their egos and strive towards fulfilling their constitutional obligations,” he wrote.

He said erosion of public trust in the independence and impartiality of the apex court could have been avoided if a “full court” was constituted, adding that a full court was also suggested in his earlier Feb 23 note. It would have ensured the legitimacy of the proceedings, Justice Minallah emphasised while concurring with the opinion of Justice Yahya Afridi, who had dismissed the petition on the grounds of maintainability.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-INP