News
Friday, April 01, 2011
Parliament to take decision on judges’ appointment, Senate told* Nayyar Hussain Bokhari says parliamentary committee to examine SC judgement and then send it to parliament for a decision
By Tanveer Ahmed
ISLAMABAD: Parliament would take a decision regarding the appointment of six high court judges to whom the parliamentary committee had rejected one-year extension but the apex court later set aside its recommendation.
The parliamentary committee would examine the court’s detailed judgement of March 21 and then send it to both the houses of parliament for consideration, Leader of the House in Senate, Nayyer Hussain Bokhari, told the Senate, adding that the decision on the matter would be taken by parliament.
Supporting Bokhari, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s Ishaq Dar proposed that “before parliament gives its decision, it should send its suggestions to its constitutional committee to consider the procedure of appointment of judges”.
It was Awami National Party’s Senator Zahid Khan who, on point of order, triggered debate on the court’s verdict which, he believed, had usurped the sovereignty of parliament. Khan was of the view that the parliamentary committee had rejected the nominations by the judicial commission within its constitutional ambit. But the SC, he said, had rejected the committee’s decision with just one stroke of pen. “Parliament is supreme. It has the right to amend the constitution,” he said and remarked, “If parliament’s recommendations are bound to meet such fate, then there is no need of such a committee.”
Bokhari said that “the court has referred the matter back to parliament for a decision”. He also said the court had maintained the supremacy and sanctity of parliament by referring the matter back to parliament.
Senator Seemi Siddiqui expressed displeasure over the receipt of civil award by the parliamentary committee for drafting the 18th Amendment. “It doesn’t make any sense that you receive a civil award just for doing your job,” she remarked.
Senator Farrah Aqil told the Senate that recently the National Database and Registration Authority had issued some computerised national identity cards with wrong data. Senate Chairman, Farooq Naik, asked the leader of the house to look into the matter.
The apex court had, on March 4, set aside the parliamentary committee’s recommendations for rejection of extension to the six judges and directed the government to issue their appointment notification in accordance with the judicial commission’s recommendations.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk