ISLAMABAD: Rumours that the National Assembly speaker had instituted a reference against a senior Supreme Court judge spread like wildfire on Saturday, with TV channels rushing to report the incident despite government claims to the contrary.

Nearly all channels reported that Speaker Ayaz Sadiq had written to the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) against Justice Asif Saeed Khosa for “violating the sanctity of the speaker’s office”, but those in government circles expressed doubts over the veracity of the information.

Sources in the Supreme Court appeared baffled by the development, while Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf, who acts as the prosecutor in proceedings before the SJC under Article 209 of the Constitution, had no knowledge of the development.

He later told Dawn that no such reference had been filed before the SJC, adding that a lot of disinformation was being spread to create a sense of despondency.

But it took the speaker’s office several hours to issue an official denial. The two-line communiqué from a National Assembly spokesperson stated simply that: “The speaker has not filed a reference against any judge”, and urged the media to refrain from attributing exaggerations and misstatements to the speaker.

In the interim, even Minister of State Talal Chaudhry appeared unsure of the actual situation. However, the newly-inducted cabinet member questioned the “hue and cry” being raised over the matter.

Speaking to a television channel, the minister said that filing a reference against judges was within the purview of the law and the Constitution of the country, adding that he couldn’t comprehend the restlessness over the issue when such a reference would also be heard by judges.

He regretted that only politicians were subjected to accountability, saying that it was high time that those who abrogated the Constitution be punished.

Political observers, however, feel that such a move could be on the cards, i.e. such a reference may be filed against a judge, though it may not necessarily originate from the National Assembly speaker. It was thought that the move was pre-empted by someone who had leaked the information to the media prematurely.

“There is no smoke without fire,” commented a senior lawyer on condition of anonymity, adding that a draft of the reference must have been prepared — an assertion that explains a number of pages circulating on social media. However, that draft did not carry the name of the mover of the reference.

Some were of the view that certain quarters could be trying to drive a wedge between the legislature and the judiciary, saying that if the reference originated from the speaker’s office, it must have been vetted by the law ministry.

News of the reference attracted immediate attention from all sides, prompting Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan to take to Twitter to express his apprehensions.

“Speaker Ayaz Sadiq’s reference against Justice Khosa has exposed his mala fide intent of going all out simply to protect Nawaz Sharif’s corruption,” he tweeted, accusing the speaker of having revealed his bias and declaring him unfit to occupy the office of NA speaker.

“Ayaz’s comment that his office is not an investigative agency begs the question how he forwarded reference against me and Jahangir Khan Tareen while rejecting [PTI’s] reference against Nawaz Sharif,” Mr Khan said, calling for Mr Sadiq to resign.

Separately, speaking to reporters at the National Press Club, Sheikh Rashid Ahmed alleged that Nawaz Sharif always wanted institutions of the state be pitched against each other.

Referring to reports of the NA speaker’s reference, Sheikh Rashid alleged that the Sharifs were trying to drag the future chief justices of the country into controversy.

Justice Asif Saeed Khosa is a senior puisne judge of the Supreme Court and next-in-line to become chief justice following the retirement of incumbent Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar.

The draft of the alleged reference circulating on social media contained excerpts from the April 20 judgement of Justice Khosa, who was a member of the five-judge Supreme Court bench that eventually disqualified former prime minister Nawaz Sharif under Article 62 (1)(f) of the Constitution in the Panama Papers case.

Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2017