ISLAMABAD, Jan 10 (NNI): Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi of the Supreme Court of Pakistan has tendered resignation a day after his plea to halt the ongoing misconduct proceedings at the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) was turned down.
Justice Mazahar Naqvi forwarded his resignation to President Arif Alvi on Wednesday, saying “I am hereby resigning from my post at the Supreme Court as it has become very difficult for me to continue my work in the current situation.”
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court had once again dismissed Justice Mazahar Naqvi’s plea to halt the ongoing misconduct proceedings at the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC).
The court had also asked the apex court judge to name the people who accused him of manipulating benches and financial wrongdoings as respondents in the case.
Three-judge bench led by Justice Aminuddin Khan and comprising Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail and Justice Musarrat Hilali heard Justice Naqvi’s petition. During the proceedings, Justice Mandokhail noted that Naqvi, in his constitutional petition, contended that the complaints lodged against him at the SJC are based on mala fide intentions.
“How can we determine whether the petitions are filed with a mala fide intention or not without hearing the complainants?” he asked. At the last hearing of the case, on Monday, the court had expressed wonder that Justice Naqvi had not arrayed the complainants as respondents.
Naqvi’s lawyer Makhdoom Ali Khan referred to Justice Qazi Faez Isa case, in which, according to him, the complainants were not named as respondents.
Justice Aminuddin Khan, however, took exception to this claim, stating that Justice Isa had named the complainants including the Assets Recovery Unit as respondents.
Makhdoom Ali Khan said that when the SJC decided to issue the first show cause to Naqvi on October 27, it had dismissed 21 other complaints filed against other judges without hearing those petitioners.
The SJC came into action against Naqvi after several misconduct complaints were filed during the tenure of former chief justice Umar Ata Bandial, who had had tasked Justice Sardar Tariq Masood to give his opinion.
Mian Dawood, a Lahore-based lawyer, was the first to file complaint in which Naqvi was accused financial irregularities, especially the transaction of a plot located in a posh area of the provincial capital, as he claimed that there had been a massive increase in the judge’s assets.
However, the issue was far complicated when an audio leak emerged purportedly featuring a conversation with former Punjab chief minister Parvez Elahi about fixing the case before a particular bench or judge, prompting a Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) office holder to move the SJC.
It remains to be seen how the SJC will proceed in the coming days given that the chief justice is scheduled to chair a meeting tomorrow (Thursday) of the top body responsible for accountability of judges.
In his comments shared on social media platform X, PML-N senior leader Khawaja Asif said acceptance of resignation wasn’t enough, as the Supreme Court judge and his heirs should face a probe into their assets in a way similar to what a politician has to go through in these matters.
Meanwhile, Dawood, who triggered this entire saga, in his reaction said he would challenge Naqvi’s resignation in the Supreme Court, saying no one could be allowed to get involved in corruption and then spend the rest of his life safely while enjoying pension and other privileges. NNI
