ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court is expected to hear on Tuesday identical petitions filed by various bar associations against the ongoing sit-ins on Constitution Avenue.

A five-judge larger bench headed by Chief Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk is likely to consider three tricky questions highlighted by Senator Raza Rabbani, representing the Awami National Party and Balochistan National Party-Awami, accusing the leaders of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and Pakistan Awami Tehreek of using the name of the armed forces during speeches at their protests.

On Sept 10, the court, which had already restrained the state authorities from acting in any manner unwarranted by the Constitution and the law, had asked the PTI and PAT to respond to the questions raised by Senator Rabbani.

The questions are: whether any political party or group may seek constitutional office-bearers to disengage from their offices under threat of violence in violation of the Constitution; whether any political leader can legitimately involve the Pakistan Army in his design to achieve unconstitutional objectives by attempting to reassure his followers that it will determine the course of his action; and whether a leader may misrepresent the support of army to his cause in public or private communication, thereby compromising its image.

Both parties have submitted their replies with the PAT, represented by Advocate Ali Zafar, rejecting the allegation of misrepresenting support of the army to its cause in public and declaring that it was neither permissible under the law nor ethics. The PAT also demanded withdrawal of what it called a wanton assertion attributed to it by the two parliamentary parties.

Barrister Yousuf Khosa, representing the PTI, said he did not have the benefit of knowledge of the facts giving rise to the questions and therefore, was unable to specifically respond to any apprehension that the petitioner parties had.

Right activist Asma Jehangir is likely to represent the Supreme Court Bar Association’s chief Kamran Murtaza in the case.

Published in Dawn, September 21th, 2014