Pakistan: Ordinance granting Chief Justice greater power reaches Senate

Islamabad [Pakistan], November 2 : A recently introduced ordinance aimed at expanding the powers of Pakistan's Chief Justice in the selection and composition of Supreme Court benches was presented in the Senate on Friday.
Amidst mixed reactions, the ordinance, which also proposes significant changes to the handling of cases under public interest provisions and the hearing schedules, is expected to advance to a bill for debate next week, Dawn reported.
In a notable move, the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) (Amendment) Ordinance 2024 was laid before the Senate by Minister for Law and Justice Azam Nazeer Tarar. Following its presentation, the deputy chairman referred the ordinance to the relevant Senate committee for further review.
The ordinance, originally promulgated by President Asif Ali Zardari in September, strengthens the chief justice's influence in bench formation within the Supreme Court, altering the composition of the three-member committee that appoints benches and assigns cases.
Under the amended ordinance, the bench-forming committee now includes the chief justice, the court's next most senior judge, and a third judge selected at the discretion of the chief justice.
"Every cause, appeal or matter before the Supreme Court shall be heard and disposed of by a bench constituted by the committee comprising the Chief Justice of Pakistan, the next most senior Judge of the Supreme Court and a Judge of the Supreme Court nominated by the Chief Justice of Pakistan, from time to time," the ordinance states.
Additionally, the ordinance revises the process for addressing cases under Section 184 (3) of the Constitution. It mandates a formal order specifying why a case is deemed of public importance before it can be pursued, reported Dawn.
As outlined in the ordinance, "A Bench hearing a matter under clause (3) of Article 184 of the Constitution shall, before proceeding with the matter on merits, decide and identify through a reasoned and speaking order the question of public importance involved in the matter and the fundamental right which is sought to be enforced."
The amendment also places constraints on the Supreme Court's ability to expedite cases. According to the new criteria, cases must be heard on a first-come, first-served basis unless specific laws or criteria demand prioritisation. If a case is to be heard out of sequence, the responsible bench must document its reasons.
"Unless a transparent criteria is already mentioned or the applicable law requires a decision within a stipulated time, every cause, matter or appeal in the Supreme Court shall be heard at its turn based on first in, first out, that is to say, the cases filed first shall be heard first. Any Bench hearing a case out of its turn shall record its reasons for doing so," the ordinance specifies.
Another provision in the ordinance requires that all Supreme Court hearings be recorded and transcribed, with these transcripts made publicly accessible. "Hearing of every cause, matter or appeal in the Supreme Court shall be recorded and transcript thereof duly prepared. Such recordings and transcripts shall be made available to the public," the document states.
In a related development, a Senate committee endorsed a proposal to increase the number of Supreme Court judges from 17 to 25. The proposal, introduced by Senator Abdul Qadir, received a thorough review during a session chaired by Farooq H. Naek, although members of the PTI and JUI-F opposed the expansion. Initially, the bill recommended raising the number of judges to 20 but was amended to 25.
On a separate note, Federal Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal raised concerns in the Senate regarding the government's funding limitations for major development projects. "This is an extremely extraordinary situation. The government is left with Rs10 trillion revenues after excluding share of provinces which straightaway goes in debt servicing," he explained.
Iqbal highlighted that due to debt repayment obligations, little funding is left for essential budgets, including defence, development, salaries, and subsidies, and he called for urgent taxation reforms to increase tax revenue and curb financial leaks, Dawn reported.
Iqbal's comments followed widespread criticism from senators over what was described as disproportionate delays in projects in smaller provinces. He attributed the situation to insufficient administrative capacity and oversight, a concern he said he had raised during discussions on the 18th Amendment.
The minister pointed to discrepancies in procurement prices among provinces and cited a case where Rs10 billion allocated for a water project in Quetta could not be accounted for in audit reports. He remarked, "The federal government cannot improve administrative capacity of the provinces. This is the job of their elected representatives to oversee the provincial administration."
Meanwhile, Minister for Industries and Production Rana Tanveer Hussain announced that the government is developing a policy to encourage electric vehicle (EV) usage, set to be introduced this month. The policy will designate 40 motorway locations for EV charging stations. Hussain also revealed that the Engineering Development Board had issued 51 certificates for the assembly and manufacturing of two- and three-wheeler EVs, with 31 companies awaiting approval to produce four-wheelers.
Addressing inflation concerns, Minister of State for Finance Ali Pervaiz Malik informed the Senate that prices for essential goods were decreasing month-over-month, with substantial declines in food and fuel prices. Malik stated, "Inflation rate is decreasing every month due to effective measures taken by the government," noting reductions in the prices of wheat flour, petrol, diesel, and electricity among other items.
In response to inflation-related queries, Malik reiterated the government's commitment to addressing inflation and highlighted recent reductions in prices for food and fuel staples as evidence of progress.