Minutes after the Supreme Court initiated suo motu proceedings on the Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) judges’ letter, former Chief Justice of Pakistan Tassaduq Hussain Jillani has stepped down from leading the one-man commission tasked with probing allegations of intelligence interference in judicial matters.
In his recusal, Justice (retd) Jillani highlighted that the letter from the judges to the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) and the chief justice would make it “violative of judicial propriety” for him to head the investigation. He argued that such matters might fall under the jurisdiction of either the Supreme Judicial Council or the Supreme Court of Pakistan itself.
Moreover, he pointed out that the inquiry’s terms of reference did not align with the subject matter raised by the six IHC judges in their letter. He noted that the judges had also requested “institutional consultation” on the issue.
While acknowledging that the letter may not strictly fall within the parameters of Article 209 of the Constitution, Justice (retd) Jillani suggested that the Chief Justice of Pakistan could address and resolve the issues raised at the institutional level.
The commission’s formation came about following a meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the incumbent Chief Justice of Pakistan, Qazi Faez Isa, in response to the emergence of the judges’ letter last week. The federal cabinet subsequently approved the commission’s formation and appointed Justice (retired) Tassaduq Hussain Jillani as its head.
The commission was entrusted with investigating the allegations outlined by the judges in their letter, with the cabinet also approving the terms of reference (ToRs) for the inquiry.
