LAHORE, May 5: A Supreme Court division bench’s composition, hearing the petition of Dr Ahmad Javed Khwaja and his brother against their preventive detention, was changed on Monday. Hearing could not take place on the date.

Justice Javed Iqbal and Falaksher referred the matter to the chief justice of Pakistan to constitute the same bench, which had partly heard the petition last week. Justice Iqbal and Karamat Nazir Bhandari were on the previous bench.

Earlier, when the petition came up before the new bench, the petitioners’ counsel Hamid Khan pointed out that since the division bench’s composition had changed, the petition should be placed before the same bench, which had previously heard the plea. Justice Iqbal, the senior bench member, accepted his submission and observed that matter was being referred to the CJ for the constitution of the previous bench. He said the date of hearing would be announced by the SC office after the confirmation of the bench constitution.

The state was supposed to argue the maintainability of the Khwajas’ petition on Monday. It has yet to update court about the mandatory production of the detenues before the federal review board, which according to the state, recommended a two-month extension in their preventive detention on March 29.

The state claimed in the last hearing that a letter written to the secretary of the review board to confirm Khwajas’ production before the board was still awaited, and nothing could be said in this regard till the receipt of official confirmation.