The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday set aside the dismissal of former Islamabad High Court (IHC) senior judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui. According to media reports, in January, a five-member bench led by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa and including Justice Aminuddin Khan, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi, and Justice Irfan Saadat had reserved its verdict on Siddiqui’s plea against his removal. The proceedings of the case were broadcast live on the apex court’s website. In his petition, the former judge had challenged a decision of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) about his dismissal from service and an Oct 11, 2018 notification under which he was removed for a speech he had delivered at Rawalpindi Bar Association. The 23-page verdict compiled by CJP Justice Qazi Faez Isa stated that Siddiqui should be declared as a retired high court judge and will also get the perks and benefits of retirement. The former judge had challenged the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) about his removal from service after a speech he had delivered at Rawalpindi Bar Association. Lawyer Hamid Khan represented the former IHC judge in the case, while Khawaja Haris appeared before the apex court to represent former director general of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lieutenant General (retd) Faiz Hameed and Brigadier (retd) Irfan Ramay.

The proceedings were broadcast live on the apex court’s website as well as on its YouTube channel. At the start of the hearing, Justice Siddiqui’s lawyer urged the court to conduct a “fair inquiry” of the matter, arguing that under Article 209(6) of the Constitution, the SJC could not present a report to the country’s president without conducting an inquiry. When asked about the allegation against his client, Hamid answered it pertained to a speech and urged the court to quash the decision against Siddiqui. Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa said the problem is not the speech but its text. The chief justice remarked that if a judge is removed for giving a speech, then half of the judiciary will go home. It is pertinent to mention here that the then President of Pakistan Dr Arif Alvi removed Islamabad High Court (IHC) judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui from his post in the light of a recommendation by the Supreme Judicial Council over his controversial speech before the District Bar Association, Rawalpindi on 21 July, 2018.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan