October 11, 2007	Thursday	Ramazan 28, 1428

ISLAMABAD, Oct 10: The Jamaat-i-Islami on Wednesday filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking review by a full court comprising all judges of its Sept 28 judgment of dismissing petitions against the holding of dual-office by President Pervez Musharraf.

“That order of the honourable court, it is respectively submitted, is a non-speaking order for the reason that no ground has been given on the basis of which the petition has been found not maintainable,” said the petition filed under Article 188 of the Constitution.

In a majority 6-3 verdict, a nine-member bench of the Supreme Court had on Sept 28 dismissed petitions against Gen Musharraf holding two offices on technical grounds, giving a legal boost to the president to contest elections for the second-term in uniform.

The minority view, however, held the petitions to be maintainable under Article 184(3) of the Constitution. Justice Falak Sher, who was also member of the bench, in his separate reasoning also questioned the eligibility of Gen Musharraf to contest the presidential election.

The petition, filed through Advocate Mohammad Akram Sheikh, requested to constitute a full court comprising all judges of the apex court to review its judgment because the majority view had overlooked some patent and manifest aspects of the prayers raised during the proceedings.

“The court has fallen into errors of fact and law apparent on the face of the record and floating on the surface and has material bearing on the final result of the case involving the enforcement of fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution. Hence indulgence of this august court is craved for review of the judgment, the petition contended.

The Jamaat, the review petition said, had challenged vires of the President to Hold Another Office Act, 2004, and the court by holding the petitions non-maintainable seemed to have ignored important aspects of the petition that if legislation itself was against the provisions of the Constitution, then the same infringed upon the fundamental rights of every citizen of Pakistan guaranteed under articles 8, 9, 17 and 25 of the Constitution.

“The provisions squarely fall in chapter I of part II of the Constitution and, therefore, involve a question of public importance. Thus, the petition under Article 184(3) of the Constitution by an individual or a group of persons or a political party is maintainable,” it argued.