ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court’s Constitutional Bench has issued a written order in the case challenging the Islamabad High Court (IHC) Division Bench’s directive that barred Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri from performing judicial duties.
The written order, consisting of five pages, was authored by the head of the five-member bench, Justice Aminuddin Khan, while Justice Shahid Bilal wrote an additional five-page note.
The court held that the IHC should first decide on the objections raised by the Registrar’s Office regarding the petition filed by Advocate Mian Dawood, and only afterward proceed with the case in accordance with the law.
The court observed that during the hearing, the petitioner, after thoroughly reading the Supreme Court’s judgement in the Malik Asad case, did not defend the high court’s order that had restrained Justice Jahangiri from performing judicial functions.
The Supreme Court further noted that the petitioner had filed an application in the IHC seeking information regarding Justice Jahangiri. However, there already exists a Supreme Court ruling concerning requests for obtaining information about judges.
Justice Shahid, agreeing with the written judgement, added a separate five-page note, questioning how the IHC Division Bench proceeded with the case without first deciding on the Registrar’s Office objections.
He emphasised that there is no legal validity in conducting proceedings without resolving such objections first, and any decision made prior to their resolution cannot be considered lawful.
He further stated that the high court did not follow the prescribed procedure and that the proceedings were initiated without determining the petitioner’s legal standing or providing any solid justification.
Justice Shahid noted that Justice Jahangiri’s stance was not even heard before he was stopped from performing his judicial duties.
“In view of the above, I convert the instant petition into appeal and allow the same, set aside the impugned order dated 16.09.2025 as a whole restoring the position ante and direct the learned Islamabad High Court, Islamabad, to firstly decide the fate of office objections through a speaking order; then proceed with the matter in accordance with law,” the judge concluded.
