IHC judges should have issued notices on ‘meddling’ issue: Marwat

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf senior vice president Sher Afzal Marwat has said that the Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges, after knowing about the level of meddling in judicial affairs, should themselves have issued contempt notices, instead of looking towards the Supreme Court.

In a private TV talk show, the lawyer maintained that when the IHC judges knew about the level of interference, they should have themselves issued contempt notices, as he knew them being respected lawyers before their appointment as judges.

“I thought they also know about their accused. If I commit anything wrong, they would issue me a contempt notice, then why someone else should be spared,” he wondered.

He believed that the recent Supreme Court verdict, concerning justice Shaukat Siddiqui, had created all this scenario, and that his stance about the “agencies’ meddling” was validated by the apex court. “I had supported him [justice Shaukat] at that time as well,” he remarked.

About the government’s decision of an inquiry commission about the IHC judges’ letter, he contended that the judges had written the letter about the executive (meddling), and now the executive wanted to handle the issue. He believed this was in negation to the Constitution and the law.

The PTI leader also pointed out that through formation of the inquiry commission, the executive wanted to provide protection to six sitting judges by virtue of a retired judge.