The Supreme Court on Tuesday declared null and void an interim order the Islamabad High Court (IHC) issued on September 16 to bar Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri from judicial work.
A constitutional bench of the Supreme Court accepted the appeal filed by Justice Tariq Jahangiri, setting aside the IHC’s earlier directive.
The Supreme Court stated that objections were raised on the petition filed in the Islamabad High Court, and therefore, the high court must first decide on the maintainability of the writ of quo warranto before proceeding further.
A five-member constitutional bench, headed by Justice Aminuddin Khan, heard the case.
Five judges from the Islamabad High Court, including Justice Tariq Jahangiri, were present during the hearing.
Justice Jahangiri’s counsel argued that only the Supreme Judicial Council has the authority to initiate proceedings against a sitting judge.
Justice Aminuddin Khan remarked that the Supreme Court’s order merely reflects the language used in the Malik Asad Ali case.
Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail noted that the court had previously held that only the Supreme Judicial Council can remove a judge.
Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar clarified that the bench is not addressing the maintainability of the quo warranto petition itself; it is up to the High Court to decide whether the petition is admissible.
Justice Mandokhail further observed that the writ petition in the high court claimed that High Court and Supreme Court judges fall under the service of Pakistan, but that judges are not public office holders.
He added that such matters may be debated during the ongoing proceedings in the high court.
The attorney-general stated that a judge cannot be restrained from judicial work under an interim order.
Justice Aminuddin Khan asked the petitioner, Mian Dawood, for his opinion. Mian Dawood agreed with the attorney-general’s stance and said that a judge should not be barred from performing judicial duties.
Accepting Justice Jahangiri’s appeal, the constitutional bench annulled the IHC’s interim order restraining him from work.
The court emphasised that this decision was taken with the consent of all parties involved.
In its written order, the Supreme Court reiterated that since objections exist on the high court petition, the Islamabad High Court must first decide on those objections before proceeding with the quo warranto hearing.
