LAHORE: The executive committee of Punjab Bar Council (PbBC) carried on Saturday a resolution demanding the removal of Justice Qazi Faez Isa for, what it believed, ridiculing armed forces, instead of appreciating them, in a recent judgment about the Faizabad dharna.

“Justice Qazi Faez Isa has recently rendered a judgment in the Faizabad dharna case in February 2019, in which the towering principles of law stand completely mutilated,” reads the resolution adopted by the six-member executive committee of the provincial bar council.

Committee Chairman Iftikhar Ibrahim Qureshi chaired the meeting with the attendance of its members Jamil Asghar Bhatti, Munir Hussain Bhatti, Chaudhry Akram Khaksar, Syed Ali Riaz Karmani and Chaudhry Rafique Siyan.

The committee’s chairman and majority of its members belonged to the Independent group, famously known as late Asma Jahangir group, at present led by Pakistan Bar Council member Ahsan Bhoon.

Asghar Bhatti and Munir Bhatti previously belonged to Hamid Khan-led Professional group, however, they switched their loyalties in last election of PbBC vice chairman and chairman executive committee. The 75-member general house of the council elects the two posts every year on Jan 31 while the tenure of the house is five year.

Commenting on the resolution, PbBC member Rana Intizar Hussain of the Professional group told Dawn the executive committee did not represent the whole house of the council neither it had the mandate to pass such resolutions. He said the mandate of the executive committee was administrative and adjudicating in nature.

He said the Saturday’s meeting of the executive committee was convened to discuss administrative affairs of the council and the resolution was not an agenda item.

The resolution said the federal government was justified in filing an application for review against the Faizabad case judgment in which Justice Isa without any evidence, factual basis or determination ridiculed the armed forces and casted serious aspersions on the intelligence agencies strengthening the narrative of India.

“Therefore, we demand that appropriate proceedings against Justice Isa may be initiated under Article 209 (5) of the Constitution for his removal as judge of the Supreme Court,” it added.

The resolution also stated that Justice Shaukat Siddiqui of the Islamabad High Court had rightly been removed by the Supreme Judicial Council as he had also transgressed the limits prescribed under the law, the Constitution and the code of conduct meant for the superior judiciary.

Published in Dawn, April 21st, 2019