ISLAMABAD: Senator Farogh Naseem of the Mutta­hida Qaumi Movement (MQM) is expected to take the oath as federal minister for law and justice on Friday (today), informed sources told Dawn on Thursday.

The sources said that President Arif Alvi would administer the oath to Mr Naseem at a ceremony to be held at Aiwan-i-Sadr, paving the way for his re-entry to the federal cabinet after seven weeks.

Mr Naseem had resigned as the law minister on June 1 in order to represent the government in the presidential reference filed against Supreme Court judge Justice Qazi Faez Isa.

Through an official statement, Mr Naseem had announced that he would represent the federation in the case and, therefore, he had stepped down as the law minister.

The Supreme Court on June 20 threw out the reference against Justice Isa, terming it “invalid” through a majority (9-1) short verdict.

Earlier in November, Mr Naseem had quit the ministry to pursue a case in the Supreme Court about the extension of the army chief’s tenure. He appeared in the Supreme Court as counsel for Chief of the Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa.

He then took the oath as the law minister on Nov 29, only a day after the apex court had announced its verdict in the case, directing the government to pass legislation on the extension/reappointment of an army chief which the government accomplished with the support of opposition parties.

Published in Dawn, July 24th, 2020