ISLAMABAD, Oct 6: Ignoring the party’s show-cause notice for “using objectionable language against the judiciary”, Syed Faisal Raza Abidi, the firebrand PPP senator from Sindh, is now in the process of preparing a reference against Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.

The PPP senator told Dawn on Saturday that he intended to move the reference against the chief justice on Oct 10 — the day when the government is to finally inform the Supreme Court about its plans to write a letter to the Swiss authorities seeking reopening of graft cases against President Asif Ali Zardari.

Seemingly unhappy with the party leadership, Mr Abidi said that his reference would also be a test case for his own party and that he would give month time at best to the government to act on it.

Otherwise, he warned, he would take an extreme step and “can even shoot myself”.

Asked under which clause of the Constitution and to whom he would send the reference against the chief justice, the PPP senator said he would disclose these details in a news conference on Oct 10.

Under Article 209 of the Constitution, either the country’s president can send a reference to the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) to hold an inquiry against a judge of the apex court or the SJC itself through a motion can initiate the process upon receiving “information from any source”.