Raising serious objections to the Supreme Court judgment striking down the SC (Review of Judgments and Orders) Act, 2023, the federal government has contended that the judgment has made parliament subservient to the court.
“By discarding the Review Act, 2023 in placing the SC Rules 1980 on a ‘higher pedestal than ordinary legislation’, this court in essence erodes the principle that judicial power is not superior ‘in degree or dignity’ to legislative power,” read the government’s review petition filed by Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Awan against the apex court’s August 11 verdict.
“The observation strikes at the very heart of the mainstay of the constitutional framework based on the separation of power as envisioned by the framers of the Constitution.
“By placing the SC Rules 1980 framed by the court under the Constitution above the ordinary legislation introduced by the legislature in exercise of its exclusive domain under the Constitution, the judgment under review has made parliament subservient to the court,” it further stated.
“This finding, with utmost respect, amounts to an unlawful encroachment into the domain of the legislature and merits to be remedied by way of a review being an error glaring on the face of the judgment,” the plea added.
