ISLAMABAD: A five-member bench headed by Chief Justice Ata Umar Bandial has resumed the hearing on different petitions filed against the constitution of the high-powered judicial commission tasked to inquire into the various audio leaks of members of the judiciary.

The SC bench — which also comprises Justice Ijaz ul Ahsan, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, and Justice Shahid Waheed — has taken up four separate petitions filed by Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) President Abid Shahid Zuberi, SCBA Secretary Muqtedir Akhtar Shabbir, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan and Advocate Riaz Hanif Rahi. 

All petitions requested the apex court to declare the commission’s formation illegal.

Ahead of the hearing today, Zuberi, submitted to the bench a number of orders of different high courts, requesting that these documents be considered for “proper adjudication” of the present case.

These orders included previous rulings from the apex court itself, the Islamabad High Court, and the Lahore High Court.

In the short previous hearing on May 31, the federal government had asked CJP Bandial, Justice Ahsan, and Justice Akhtar to recuse themselves from the bench, adding that the bench hearing the case be reconstituted.

Moreover, the Justice Isa-led commission, too, raised objections over the five-member bench hearing the petitions and submitted that it would not be appropriate for the bench to hear the petitions.

The commission submitted that the judicial panel had no interest in the matter other than undertaking the assignment given to it and doing so strictly in accordance with the constitution and the law.

• We want to solve the mayor’s issue in a political way, says Wahab.
• Situation will improve, If there is no interference, he says.
• “Has world not seen, JI was number one in polls?” JI leader asks.

A Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)-backed mayor for Karachi would be able to manage the city’s matters better compared to someone from another party, Murtaza Wahab — PPP’s nominee for the top slot — said Monday.

“Becoming the mayor isn’t a matter of ego. If a person belonging to any party other than the PPP gets elected as the mayor, then they’ll complain about administrative powers,” Wahab told Geo News’ Shahzeb Khanzada.

Wahab, who served as Karachi administrator from August 2021 to December 2022, said: “Since PPP is in power in both the federal and provincial governments, it will be easy to run the affairs of the Karachi mayor belongs to PPP.”

Furthermore, he said, only 8 or 9 representatives of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) — which threw its weight behind Jamaat-e-Islami’s (JI) Hafiz Naeem Ur Rehman for the coveted post last month — attended a JI meeting recently, adding that the latter was not likely to have enough support for the post.

It is pertinent to mention here that elections for Karachi mayor are to be conducted on June 15, and ahead of the appointment, PPP and JI are two of the biggest contenders for the post. Both parties are engaged in a heated battle for the position, each claiming that it has the most voters.  

“We want to solve the mayor’s issue in a political way,” Wahab said.

Moreover, he conceded that PPP has made mistakes in the past.

“There was criticism that we did not have buses and ambulances, but they can be seen today,” he said, referring to the recently launched People’s Bus Service.

He added that there was criticism on the issue of infrastructure in the city, but that too is being improved.

“Work is being done in Karachi,” Wahab said.

We are working to improve the sewage system, the playgrounds, and the infrastructure of the city, he said.

“Road construction is going on in the site industrial area. Korangi Causeway used to sink in the rain, we have improved it. Work on the Malir Expressway is progressing rapidly,” he added, confirming that the section from Qayyumabad to Shah Faisal would be completed by the end of the year.

Wahab further said that resources are very important for developmental work to continue.

“If there is no interference in administrative and political matters, the situation will improve.

“Let the management do the work,” he said, adding that if the PPP is allowed to work with any interference, the party will deliver.

‘JI is number one’

JI’s candidate for mayor Naeem, speaking on the same show, rejected PPP’s claims for the top post.

Rejecting the PPP’s claims that PTI would not support JI, the party’s Karachi chief, Naeem, said: “Who told them we invited everyone? They do not have complete information, yet they are confident they will appoint the Karachi mayor.”

“They have experience of breaking other parties, but they are dealing with JI for the first time,” he said.

However, he said that there was no “enmity” between the two sides.

“They must accept that our numbers are greater. They will have to end the mentality that they have had since the ‘70s that they will not agree with the mandate even if the country breaks.”

“We have no issues with negotiations,” he said.

If their position had truly been number one, it would have been a different matter, but has the world not seen that JI came out on top?

He then added that the election commission and the RO were used to change election results.

“Even today we are present in the Islamabad High Court and will now be going to the Supreme Court over the matter of six Union Councils (UCs)… then there were 5-6 they took through recounting. Then they took 10-12 seats of the PTI.”

If they had genuinely, we would have accepted. However, they cannot expect us to comply if they snatch seats.

Naeem further said that both JI and PTI individually had more votes than PPP, and stated that both his party and PTI were working together.

“We are in contact with PTI members but we do not want to put all our cards on the table yet, lest they go and start nabbing PTI members who support us.”

He further said that he had spoken to the high court and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to normalise the matter and reiterated that JI was PTI’s “custodian” in Karachi.

“We are trying to provide relief and protection to them,” he said.

• Saifullah Khan Nyazee continues to hold office of senator. 
• Senator avoids messages when asked reason for not resigning
• Nyazee also chooses not to attend calls on WhatsApp.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Senator Saifullah Khan Nyazee, who had bid adieu to politics as well as the party last month, in condemnation of the violent protests of May 9, appears in no mood to actually keep his word, The News reported on Tuesday.

On May 26, Nyazee announced parting ways with PTI and politics in order to focus on his health and family.

“I am today announcing quitting Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and politics because I have to focus on my life, especially my family and my own health, as the last year has been very hectic and I need rest now,” he had told a news conference here at the National Press Club.

However, he has not yet tendered his resignation as a senator and nor has formally quit PTI, as his name can be seen on serial no 76 of the Senate of Pakistan’s website, detailing the current members of the House.

When asked via short messages on WhatsApp, Nyazee didn’t respond to the questions about whether he had actually left the party and politics, and what were his plans to quit as a lawmaker.

The senator also chose not to attend the calls on WhatsApp.

Nyazee had been elected senator from Punjab in March 2021 and, technically, his tenure ends in March 2027. Another interesting thing about his announcement of parting ways with PTI, the politician was spotted during a news conference along with seven other party legislators — three days after he announced saying goodbye to the PTI and politics. All of them had also submitted a condemnation resolution to the Senate Secretariat.

Unlike him, another PTI Senator Abdul Qadir from Balochistan — who had made his way to the Upper House of the Parliament in March 2021 as an independent candidate and later joined the PTI — also parted ways with the party, citing May 9 attacks on military installations as the reason.

“I will from now on sit as an independent member in the House,” he had announced. In line with his decision soon afterwards, he applied for allotment of a seat in the Senate as an independent member, and now he occupies a place on the list of legislators as an independent senator.

It may be noted that PTI’s former secretary general Asad Umar had also relinquished all the party positions, saying under these circumstances, it was not possible for him to lead the party, but he continues to issue statements on politics and the national economy from the platform of the party. PTI’s Central Media Department regularly issues these statements.