April 2, 2003	Wednesday	Muharram 29, 1424

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ISLAMABAD, April 1: The Supreme Court on Tuesday adjourned the hearing of a constitutional petition filed by newspaper owners to April 23, directing the federal government to submit a written statement.

The court issued notice to the deputy attorney-general and advocates-general of Sindh and Punjab to assist the court.

The bench exempted Attorney-General Makhdoom Ali Khan from appearance when he informed the court that he was a consultant in the 7th Wage Board Award when Justice (retd) Raja Afrasiab was hearing the parties. He said he was paid for his services by the owners and thus it would be personally embarrassing for him to appear in the case.

The All Pakistan Newspapers Society has approached the court under its original jurisdiction seeking a direction that the government has no power to constitute wage board for determining the salaries of its employees.

As soon the bench headed by Chief Justice Shaikh Riaz Ahmad took up the petition, Advocate Abdul Hafeez Pirzada asked it to issue notice to the federal government as it was impleaded as one of the parties.

Advocate Akram Shaikh, representing the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (Dastoor), informed the court that a five-judge bench had ruled on an identical petition challenging the Fifth Wage Board Award that the petition could not be filed directly in the Supreme Court. He asked the chief justice to constitute a larger bench.

Mr Pirzada, representing the petitioner association, said the petition had been returned by the Registrar, declaring that it could not be filed in the Supreme Court. But the decision, the counsel said, was reversed by Justice Munir A. Shaikh. He said the petition had been admitted for hearing as the respondents had not challenged the decision of Justice Munir A. Sheikh which had attained finality in the eyes of law.

At this stage, senior counsel exchanged hot words and the court asked them to show respect to each other. Advocate Shaikh said it had become habit of Mr Pirzada to target lawyers and judges. Mr Pirzada said he had failed to understand why Akram Shaikh was behaving in such a manner which, he added, he would not tolerate.

Abid Hasan Minto, the counsel of Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists, was not in the court as he was busy before the five-judge bench constituted to hear a set of over 700 cases.

The court issued notice to Deputy Attorney-General Hafiz S.A. Rehman, Advocate-General Sindh Anwar Mansoor and Advocate-General Punjab Shahbar Raza Rizvi to appear and assist the court.

The court directed the federal government to file a written statement. The chief justice showed willingness to fix the case on April 15, but the counsel for the PFUJ (Dastoor) asked the court to fix it on April 23.

Mr Pirzada said he had been on general adjournment due to illness but now he was ready to appear on any date the court would fix. The case would now be taken up on April 23.

The bench consisted of Chief Justice Shaikh Riaz Ahmad, Justice Mian Mohammad Ajmal and Justice Mohammad Nawaz Abbasi.