ISLAMABAD — State Minister for Law Aqeel Malik said on Thursday that the 27th Amendment has vested authority to hear constitutional matters in the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC), not the Supreme Court (SC). “Judges have attempted to file their petition in the Supreme Court, but the court is not the correct forum for this request,” he said while speaking on Geo News’ programme “Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Saath”.
Malik said the Supreme Court and the FCC had adopted their respective rules, adding: “The constitutional court has been established, and all cases of constitutional nature will now be heard by it.” He questioned why the judges had submitted their plea to the Supreme Court in the first place. According to him, the judges’ petition “should have been filed in the constitutional court”, as only the FCC is empowered to hear it after the amendment. Malik also rejected claims about any compromise on judicial independence, stating that the authority for transferring judges — previously held by the president — had now been assigned to the Judicial Commission.
“Resigning is the judges’ prerogative,” he said, adding that a misleading impression was being created regarding judicial resignations. Meanwhile, sources said four Islamabad High Court judges have decided to challenge the 27th Amendment in the Supreme Court, with a draft of their petition prepared and sent ahead. Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Justice Babar Sattar, Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz, and Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan are among the petitioners, the sources added.