ISLAMABAD – Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, the senior judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, has written another letter to outgoing Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa.
“People are watching our actions, and history never forgives,” wrote Justice Mansoor while addressing CJP Isa in his letter that was written on Oct 23.
He also quoted Sir Thomas More, a British lawyer, social philosopher, author and judge.
The letter was written in the context of the tax case bench formed by the Practice and Procedure Committee. In his correspondence, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah expressed his regret for sitting on the special bench, reiterating that “people are watching our actions, and history never forgives,”.
He further mentioned that he had previously stated he would not be part of special benches until a full court convened regarding the amendment ordinance.
The last hearing of the tax-related review case took place on October 4, during which a three-member bench led by Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa heard the case.
An order had been issued to include Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan in the bench.
Justice Mansoor Ali Shah had previously written a dissenting note in the central tax case.
A decision was made to include him in the review case.
Moreover, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah had earlier expressed reservations about the amendment ordinance, leaving the Practice and Procedure Committee meeting without participating.
In his letter to the judges’ committee, he stated that the Practice and Procedure Ordinance was introduced in haste, with the ordinance notified within hours of its implementation.
He highlighted that the committee was reconstituted without any explanation, and no reason was provided for the removal of the second senior-most judge Justice Muneeb Akhtar from the committee’s formation.
