Justice Faez Isa-led judicial commission,
Islamabad_The federal government on Saturday constituted a three-member judicial commission to probe recent audio leaks involving judges and their family members,
Members of the commission are Justice Qazi Faez Isa, Chief Justice Balochistan High Court Chief Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan and Chief Justice Islamabad High Court Justice Aamer Farooq.
The judicial commission has been tasked to complete the job within 30 days.
In March last, the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) had filed a reference against Supreme Court Judge Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi in the Supreme Judicial Council for “misconduct” after his name surfaced in connection with the audio leaks purportedly involving him, former Punjab chief minister Parvez Elahi and others.
There were purportedly also audio leaks involving relatives of retired and serving judges.
Among the multiple audio leaks, the commission will also probe into the veracity of the alleged call between former Punjab chief minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi and a sitting SC judge as well as another call between CM Elahi and a SC lawyer over the constitution of an apex court bench.
Sharing the reasons behind constituting the committee, the cabinet division’s notification stated that it was a result of the recent widely circulated controversial audios pertaining to the judiciary including the former chief justice and judges of the Supreme Court which raised “serious apprehensions about the independence, impartiality and uprightness of the Chief Justices/Judges of the Superior Courts in the administration of justice”.
The government said the audio leaks raised serious apprehensions about the independence of the judiciary in the public interest; therefore, it has constituted the commission under Section 3 of the Pakistan Commissions of the Inquiry Act, 2017.
It stated that such audio leaks have eroded public trust and serious concerns have been raised by the general public regarding the independence, impartiality and uprightness of the chief justice and judges of the superior courts.
The notification mentioned that the judiciary is one of the main pillars of the Constitution and the society’s confidence gets shattered when the independence of the judiciary is tarnished.
“It is imperative to inquire into the authenticity, correctness and veracity of these audio leaks in order to restore not just the credibility of the judiciary but also the public trust and confidence in the Judiciary in the larger public interest, as a matter of definite public importance,” it added.
This dirty saga of audio leaks began soon after former prime minister Imran Khan was ousted from office last year through a no-confidence motion. However, it took an ugly turn when a series of leaks started coming to the fore related to sitting judges, their family members and the leaders of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
PTI Chairman Khan had also approached the Supreme Court seeking intervention in the matter but no action was taken in this regard.
On May 2, 2023, 24News TV channel reported that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had ordered constitution of a committee to probe the audio leaks of the former chief justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar’s son Najam Saqib. Prime Minister also directed to ensure the representation of all parties in the committee while chairing a consultative meeting of the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N).
There was another purported audio leak of CJP Justice Umar Ata Bandial’s mother-in-law.
Purported audio leaks
Following are the audio leaks which the newly-formed judicial commission has been tasked to probe:
The purported telephonic conversation between the former Punjab chief minister and an advocate regarding a sitting judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
Conversation between former Punjab chief minister and an advocate about fixation of some cases before a particular SC bench.
Conversation between former Punjab chief minister and a sitting apex court judge.
Conversation between former chief justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar and a senior lawyer.
Conversation between a lawyer and a journalist on the outcome of a case before a particular SC bench.
Conversation between former Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan and his party colleague about their links in the apex court.
Conversation between the mother-in-law of CJP Umar Ata Bandial and the wife of a lawyer regarding SC cases and a conversation about an unconstitutional rule.
Conversation between ex-CJP Nisar’s son Najam Saqib and his friend mentioning his father in a political role
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