KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Wednesday ruled that the existing benches of the SHC would continue to hear constitutional petitions until passing of a resolution by the provincial assembly for establishment of constitutional bench.

A two-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Mohammad Shafi Siddiqui and Justice Jawad Akbar Sarwana also said that at this point of time there was no impediment for the bench to hear and conclude the remaining arguments of lawyers on a set of constitutional petitions.

The bench was hearing various identical petitions filed last year by leaders of Jamaat-i-Islami and others challenging an amendment to the Sindh Local Government Act that allowed unelected persons to run for the election of mayor and deputy mayor and also impugned the notification about appointment of Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab.

At the outset of the hearing, a lawyer for one of the petitioners, M. Amir Khan, submitted that by virtue of the latest amendment to the Constitution, the 26th Constitutional Amendment, these matters could only be heard by a constitutional bench of the SHC.

Court gives ruling when a lawyer said plea challenging Karachi mayor’s election can only be heard by SHC’s constitutional bench following 26th Amendment

The counsel relied upon the newly framed Article 202A read with Article 175A(2) of the Constitution as it stands now (introduced under Sections 17 and 7 of the XXVI Act of 2024, respectively).

However, the bench in its order said: “We are not in agreement that as of now the matter ought to be entrusted to a Constitutional Bench of the High Court. Sub-clause (7)(b) of Article 202A of the Constitution suggests otherwise”.

It noted that newly framed Article 202A was related to formation of constitutional benches of high courts, but its sub-clause (7)(b) also said, this Article shall come into force if in respect of a high court the respective provincial assembly, through a resolution passed by majority of the total membership of the joint sitting or the respective provincial assembly, as the case may be, give effect to the provisions of this Article.

Therefore, the bench said: “We are of the view that up until passing of such resolution by the provincial assembly, the rosters assigned to different benches of the high court would continue to operate and at this point of time there is no impediment for this bench to hear and conclude the left over arguments of the learned counsel. Be that as it may, only as an indulgence the matters are adjourned to 01.11.2024.”

It also stated that ad-interim order passed earlier to continue till the next date of hearing.

It may be recalled that in June 2023, the SHC had dismissed a miscellaneous application filed by the JI’s mayoral candidate Hafiz Naeemur Rehman for interim relief against election of mayor, but ruled that the result of Karachi mayor election would remain subject to the final outcome of such petitions.

The JI’s petitioners had contended that they were seriously aggrieved by the sudden promulgation of the Sindh Local Government (Amendment) Act 2023 as it was passed with retrospective effect illegally and unreasonably against all norms of justice only to facilitate Murtaza Wahab and despite impugned mala fide legislation, the election of mayor/deputy mayor was held in coercive manner on June 15, 2023 as the majority of members of the PTI had allegedly been kept in undeclared illegal confinement by the ruling party of Sindh and subsequently both candidates of PPP had been declared elected as mayor and deputy mayor and the ECP instead of taking notice of alleged illegalities also notified the result on the following day.

Published in Dawn, October 24th, 2024