The Chief Justice, Umar Ata Bandial, on Tuesday asked the relevant officials to track down the hacker “Indibell’s” Twitter account, whose operator(s) have leaked audio recordings of purported telephonic conversations involving senior jurists, sparking off a controversy.
“Check out Indibell’s Twitter handle, is it operating from outside the country or inside the country?” the CJP directed the Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan.
The top judge’s remarks came during the apex court’s hearing on a set of petitions filed against the constitution of a high-powered judicial commission tasked to inquire into the various audio leaks of members of the judiciary.
The SC bench took up four separate petitions filed by Supreme Court Bar Association) President Abid Shahid Zuberi, SCBA Secretary Muqtedir Akhtar Shabbir, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan and Advocate Riaz Hanif Rahi.
All petitions requested the apex court to declare the commission’s formation illegal.
It is pertinent to note that during the hearing of the petitions on May 28, the same bench stayed the commission’s working and suspended the notification that formed it.
At the outset of the hearing, AGP Usman opened his arguments with discussions on the “conflict of interest” of judges hearing the petition.
The CJP, taking issue with the “allegation” said that the apex court is a constitutional office that has its own powers.
“A judge cannot be made a party to a contempt petition,” he said, adding that a chief justice cannot be asked to leave a bench upon allegations.
“The powers of the chief justice or judge cannot be reduced as per requirement,” he said.
