**Supreme Court review petition on defection clause: A closer look**
The Supreme Court recently began the hearing on the Supreme Court Bar Association’s review petition regarding the defection clause under Article 63A. Initially, there was a struggle to form a larger bench due to Justice Munib Akhtar and Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah opting out. Finally, Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan was added to the bench to address the case.
During the hearing, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa raised concerns about merging different constitutional jurisdictions and questioned the clubbing of the presidential reference and a petition under Article 184(3). The court emphasized that Article 63A protected parliamentary party rights over individual members.
The SCBA President highlighted concerns that the majority judgment seemed to rewrite the constitution through its opinion. The court also discussed the role of party heads in disqualifying members for voting against party lines. The CJP emphasized the need to understand the implications of not counting votes against party lines.
The court requested further information on party practices in other countries at the next hearing. Despite objections raised by representatives, the court maintained its stance and welcomed inputs from all parties involved in the case.
Stay tuned for more updates on this critical legal battle.
*Published in Dawn, October 2nd, 2024*
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