LAHORE: The Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Amendment Ordinance 2024, which changed the composition of a three-judge committee, has been challenged before the Lahore High Court.

Munir Ahmad, a lawyer, filed a petition through Advocate Azhar Siddique, alleging that presidential ordinance is based on malice.

It highlights that there is already a Supreme Court ruling on the Practice and Procedure Act 2023, and the powers of the apex court cannot be increased or decreased through an ordinance.

The petition argues that the respondents should be ordered to immediately withdraw the ‘draconian’ ordinance as it is in violation of the Constitution.

It says the discretion exercised by the respondents is unfettered in nature, which is in violation of Section 24-A of the General Clauses Act, 1897.

The petition argued that implementing the impugned ordinance can disrupt the judicial system, causing uncertainty and potentially frustrating Pakistan’s judicial history. Therefore, it says, to prevent harm to the judicial system and protect citizens’ rights, it is essential to set aside the ordinance before its enforcement.

The petition asks the court to declare the impugned ordinance null and void and also halt its implementation until a final decision on the matter.

The registrar office has fixed the petition for hearing before the court of Justice Faisal Zaman Khan for Monday (tomorrow) as an “objection case” as it objected to the maintainability of the petitioner.

Published in Dawn, September 22nd, 2024