ISLAMABAD – The federal cabinet met under the chair of Prime Minister ImranKhan on Monday and affirmed that “there are no holy cows in any department”regarding the recently filed references against judges of the superiorjudiciary.
The cabinet members dismissed the criticism directed at the government overthe filing of references in the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), stressingthat the government will continue to pursue uniform justice for all.
Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Information and Broadcasting,Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan addressed a post-cabinet meeting news conference andsaid the law minister briefed the cabinet at length regarding thecomplaints forwarded to the SJC against the judges quoting the premierImran Khan as saying that “no one is above the law”.
She said the ruling PTI had swept to power with a mandate of ensuringuniform justice in the country, enchanting the slogan of “one, not twoPakistans”.
References against three judges forwarded to SJC, confirms Law Ministrylink
The minister stressed that the government was talking about the rule of lawand whenever it thinks a citizen conducts an activity outside the ambit ofthe law and Constitution, then the law will come into force and there willbe no compromise on that irrespective of the department.
“It cannot happen that Imran Khan, while comprising on his politicalinterests, becomes a part of the status quo and shuts his eyes to what ishappening in order to fend off problems,” she vowed.
The SAPM recalled the chain of events behind the filing of the references,saying the Assets Recovery Unit (ARU) of the Prime Minister’s Office hadforwarded the complaints it received to the law ministry after verificationand counter-verification.
The SJC – the apex body which oversees the conduct of judges of thesuperior judiciary – had last week issued a notice to the federalgovernment through the attorney general regarding references filed againstJustice Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Karim Khan Agha for hearing on June 14.
The references accuse the two judges of concealing their assets andrecommend action against them under Article 209 of the Constitution.