ISLAMABAD: In a late-night development, the Federal Cons­titutional Court (FCC) of Pakistan decided that no judicial work would be carried out today (Tuesday) in view of security arrangements ahead of the arrival of foreign delegations — as well as the restrictions on movement imposed on the general public.

The restrictions in question stem from the extraordinary security measures put in place for the anticipated second round of US-Iran peace talks in Islamabad, expected to be held this week.

“The staff as well as the lawyers had the access to reach the FCC from the Margalla Road on Monday, but in case the foreign dignitaries start arriving in the capital city and the counsel or the litigants face any difficulty to attend to court proceedings because of the restrictions on their movement, the court administration may decide to reschedule the cases by cancelling the cause list,” a senior court official told Dawn on Monday.

Subsequently, through a notification, FCC Registrar Hafeezullah Khan announced that the cause list for Tuesday stood cancelled. “However, all officers and staff shall work from home and shall not leave the station,” the notification said, adding that all four branch registries would remain open for judicial and administrative work.

SC conducts hearings at principal seat after police allow lawyers, litigants access to Red Zone

To avoid inconvenience to litigants and their counsel, FCC had announced late on Sunday evening that it would remain closed on Monday, April 20.

A formal notification to this effect was also issued by the court, where FCC Chief Justice Amin­uddin Khan directed all officers and members of staff to perform their official duties from home.

Regarding the Supreme Court of Pakistan, a source privy to events said that proceedings were held at the principal seat in Islamabad on Monday, since police allowed the litigants and their counsel to reach the court after showing their notices, and it is likely that a similar practice would be repeated on Tuesday.

Online participation

As the Supreme Court conducted court proceedings on Monday, around 20 cases out of a total of 28 were disposed of, while one of the members of the bench participated from the Lahore Registry via secure video link.

“In a remarkable demonstration of institutional resilience and technological advancement, the Supreme Court successfully conducted court proceedings on Monday from the principal seat in Islamabad, while Justice Ayesha Malik joined the bench from the Lahore Registry through a secure video link,” stated an SC announcement.

It said this arrangement was necessitated by an emergent situation affecting the composition of the bench at the Lahore Registry. The two-judge bench that conducted the hearing comprised CJP Afridi and Justice Malik.

In ordinary circumstances, such an eventuality would have led to the delisting of all scheduled cases, causing inconvenience to litigants and lawyers.

However, owing to the apex court’s continued investment in digitisation and integration of modern technology, the SC was able to proceed seamlessly with the scheduled hearings without disruption, the handout stated.

Published in Dawn, April 21st, 2026