The Supreme Court of Pakistan has removed the Additional Registrar (Judicial) due to a serious lapse and has directed the Registrar to look into the matter.
The issue pertains to mismanagement in the fixation of cases. CPLA Nos. 836-K to 887-K, 951-K, 1056-K of 2020, 741-K to 743-K of 2021, and 165-K of 2022 are a group of cases in which the vires of the Customs Act, 1969 were challenged. These cases were meant to be fixed before the Constitutional Bench but were mistakenly scheduled before the regular Bench of the Supreme Court. As a result, this caused a wastage of time and resources for both the institution and the parties involved.
Briefly, the mentioned cases were fixed before a regular Bench of three Judges. The cases were heard on January 13, 2025, during which, in addition to the merits of the case, the constitutionality of subsection 2 of section 11A of the Customs Act was also challenged. Based on this, the jurisdiction of the Bench was contested. The cases were subsequently adjourned to January 16, 2025.
Upon realizing the serious lapse on their part, the Judicial Branch approached the regular Committee under section 2(1) of the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act, 2023. In light of the seriousness of the lapse, the Committee convened on January 17, 2025, under the Chairmanship of the Chief Justice of Pakistan. The Committee noted that clause 3 of Article 191A of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, read with clause 5 of Article 191A, expressly vests such jurisdiction in the Constitutional Bench and no other. Consequently, the Committee withdrew these cases from the regular Bench and directed that they should be placed before the Constitutional Bench Committee, constituted under Article 191A of the Constitution, for re-fixation.
The regular Committee also directed that, in the future, all cases falling under Article 191A of the Constitution shall be placed before the Constitutional Bench Committee, irrespective of any order passed by a regular Bench. Additionally, the regular Committee instructed the Registrar of the Supreme Court to expedite the scrutiny process for all pending cases and to carry out due diligence on newly instituted cases daily, to avoid the recurrence of such lapses.
It is worth noting that the Constitutional Bench Committee also met on January 17, 2025, and decided to fix all cases challenging the 26th Constitutional Amendment and the vires of certain laws. A Constitutional Bench comprising eight Judges will hear these petitions on January 27, 2025.
Meanwhile, the regular Bench, consisting of Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi, heard the contempt proceedings initiated against the Additional Registrar (Judicial). However, due to the Additional Registrar (Judicial) being on sick leave, the Registrar of the Supreme Court, Muhammad Salim Khan, appeared before the Bench. He argued that the fixation of the cases was due to a mistake, which is currently being examined. He further contended that the delisting of the cases before this Bench was not based on any malicious intent by the Additional Registrar, but rather was a bona fide action taken in compliance with the direction of the regular Committee.
The Supreme Court of Pakistan issued an order for the removal of the Additional Registrar (Judicial). The Chief Justice of Pakistan also directed the Registrar of the Supreme Court to dedicate more resources to expedite the completion of scrutiny for pending cases, in order to avoid inconvenience to the litigants and the legal community.