In a recent development, Supreme Court judge Justice Athar Minallah asserted that there is no established judicial precedent in the country for the suspension of penalties based on the reversal of disqualification. This statement came during a hearing convened by the apex court in response to the PTI founder’s request against the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) contempt charge. The court indicated that it would entertain the contempt of court petition against the ECP on Thursday.
During the proceedings, Justice Tariq Mehmood noted that the Toshakhana disqualification case application was not filed in the Supreme Court. Lawyer Shehbaz Khosa urged the court to prioritize the disqualification petition before a three-member bench. However, Justice Tariq Mehmood pointed out that only two judges were available in Islamabad, and a Toshakhana case typically required a decision by at least a three-member bench.
Justice Athar Minallah highlighted a specific request before the Supreme Court: if the judgment of the Toshakhana case was suspended, the associated sentence should also be declared null and void. “We see no judicial precedent in the history of Pakistan for the suspension of sentence on the basis of annulment of disqualification,” he remarked.
In response, the PTI lawyer cited a judicial precedent where Makhdoom Javed Hashmi’s sentence was quashed. The lawyer suggested that the Supreme Court could form a bench by calling judges on leave. However, Justice Tariq Mehmood clarified that the judges were currently unavailable.
Ultimately, the Supreme Court rejected the request for an urgent hearing on the appeal to undo the sentence of the PTI founder, setting the stage for further legal proceedings.
