Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa has sought an explanation from Supreme Court staff following the publication of a second clarification by eight judges in the reserved seats case, without submitting the original case file.
CJP Isa has directed Deputy Registrar Mujahid Mahmood, Assistant Registrar Shahid Habib, and Webmaster Asim Javed to explain how the clarification was released on the Supreme Court’s website without following the standard procedure.
“How was the clarification issued without submitting the original file?” CJP Isa asked in a notice addressed to the concerned officials on Saturday.
Sources within the Supreme Court revealed that both the Deputy Registrar and Assistant Registrar have been formally notified and are required to provide details on the procedural oversight. The court has also sought an explanation from Webmaster Asim Javed regarding the incident.
The incident occurred after eight Supreme Court judges issued a second clarification regarding their ruling on reserved seats for women and minorities. In their clarification, the judges reiterated that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) must enforce the court’s decision, despite the government’s amendments to the Elections Act, 2017.
The Supreme Court had previously ruled in July that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was entitled to the reserved seats. This ruling was challenged following changes to the election law by the government, but the bench reaffirmed that these amendments could not override the original judgment.
