ISLAMABAD: In a victory for the ruling coalition authorities and a blow to former Prime Minister Imran Khan, the Pakistan Supreme Court docket reinstated amendments made to the nation’s Nationwide Accountability Ordinance (NAO), overturning its personal choice from final yr, Geo Information reported.
A five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faiz Isa and comprising Justice Aminuddin, Justice Jamal Khan Mandukhel, Justice Athar Minallah, and Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi introduced the unanimous verdict.
Approving the intra-court appeals filed by the federal and provincial governments, Pakistan’s apex court docket remarked that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan couldn’t show that NAB (Nationwide Accountability Bureau) amendments had been unconstitutional.
Notably, the highest anti-graft physique and the PTI founder had been made respondents within the intra-party appeals.
The bulk judgement had struck down some amendments made to the Nationwide Accountability Ordinance (NAO), 1999.
The amendments — Nationwide Accountability (Second Modification) Act 2022 — had been handed in a joint sitting of the parliament in April 2022 through the Pakistan Democratic Motion (PDM)-led authorities, which got here into energy after ousting ex-premier Khan through a no-trust transfer in 2022, as reported by Geo Information.
It modified sections 2, 4, 5, 6, 25 and 26 of the NAB legal guidelines, nevertheless, 9 out of 10 amendments had been declared “null and void” by the CJP Bandial-led bench on the PTI founder’s petition filed in June 2022.
Referring to the September 15 ruling, the court docket at this time identified that the Supreme Court docket (Observe and Process) Act, 2023 — which required {that a} plea have to be heard by “not lower than 5 judges of the SC” — was enacted whereas Khan’s petition was pending adjudication.
The highest court docket additionally famous that the petition difficult the amendments made to the Ordinance was not heard and determined in accordance with the SC (Observe and Process) Act — hereinafter known as the “Act”.
In a 2-1 majority verdict introduced in September final yr, a three-member bench had authorised Imran Khan’s petition, difficult the NAB legislation amendments made through the tenure of the earlier PDM-led authorities.
Subsequently, the federal authorities, filed an intra-court attraction towards the Pakistan SC judgement in October, stating that almost all judgement suffers from “procedural impropriety” and is, due to this fact, “liable to be put aside.”
Following the amendments, the NAB was restricted to investigating any graft case value lower than Pakistrupees (PKR) 500 million. The accountability physique’s powers had been additionally curtailed to probe right into a fraud case until its victims are greater than 100.
The amendments additionally modified the NAB legislation to maintain an accused in its custody for a most of 14 days which was later exceeded to 30 days, Geo Information reported.
A five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faiz Isa and comprising Justice Aminuddin, Justice Jamal Khan Mandukhel, Justice Athar Minallah, and Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi introduced the unanimous verdict.
Approving the intra-court appeals filed by the federal and provincial governments, Pakistan’s apex court docket remarked that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan couldn’t show that NAB (Nationwide Accountability Bureau) amendments had been unconstitutional.
Notably, the highest anti-graft physique and the PTI founder had been made respondents within the intra-party appeals.
The bulk judgement had struck down some amendments made to the Nationwide Accountability Ordinance (NAO), 1999.
The amendments — Nationwide Accountability (Second Modification) Act 2022 — had been handed in a joint sitting of the parliament in April 2022 through the Pakistan Democratic Motion (PDM)-led authorities, which got here into energy after ousting ex-premier Khan through a no-trust transfer in 2022, as reported by Geo Information.
It modified sections 2, 4, 5, 6, 25 and 26 of the NAB legal guidelines, nevertheless, 9 out of 10 amendments had been declared “null and void” by the CJP Bandial-led bench on the PTI founder’s petition filed in June 2022.
Referring to the September 15 ruling, the court docket at this time identified that the Supreme Court docket (Observe and Process) Act, 2023 — which required {that a} plea have to be heard by “not lower than 5 judges of the SC” — was enacted whereas Khan’s petition was pending adjudication.
The highest court docket additionally famous that the petition difficult the amendments made to the Ordinance was not heard and determined in accordance with the SC (Observe and Process) Act — hereinafter known as the “Act”.
In a 2-1 majority verdict introduced in September final yr, a three-member bench had authorised Imran Khan’s petition, difficult the NAB legislation amendments made through the tenure of the earlier PDM-led authorities.
Subsequently, the federal authorities, filed an intra-court attraction towards the Pakistan SC judgement in October, stating that almost all judgement suffers from “procedural impropriety” and is, due to this fact, “liable to be put aside.”
Following the amendments, the NAB was restricted to investigating any graft case value lower than Pakistrupees (PKR) 500 million. The accountability physique’s powers had been additionally curtailed to probe right into a fraud case until its victims are greater than 100.
The amendments additionally modified the NAB legislation to maintain an accused in its custody for a most of 14 days which was later exceeded to 30 days, Geo Information reported.