The 5-member Bench headed by Justice M Javed Buttar comprises Justice Nasirul Mulk, Justice Raja Fayyaz Ahmad, Justice Chaudhry Ejaz Ahmad and Justice Hamid Ali Mirza. Among the 17 judges of the Supreme Court Justice Buttar is 11th in seniority, justice Nasirul Mulk 14th, Justice Fayyaz 15th, Justice Ejaz 16th while Justice Mirza is an ad hoc judge of the apex court.
It is learnt that on the request of Justice Iftikhar, the larger bench would hold day to day hearing of these petitions from May 7. Earlier, on April 24, both the Supreme Court and the Supreme Judicial Council heard separately petitions of Justice Iftikhar.
The Supreme Judicial Council adjourned hearing of the Presidential Reference to May 2 and 3 observing "counsel for the CJ has been addressing arguments on preliminary legal objections for the last three hearings, in all probability he is expected to conclude his submissions on May 2, 2007."
However, the head of the three member Supreme Court bench Justice Sardar Mohammad Raza Khan declined to hear these petitions and referred them to ACJ to constitute a larger bench of the apex court to decide these constitutional matters.
Justice Raza was one of the 5 members of the SJC, which on March 9 passed an order, instructing Justice Iftikhar "not to perform functions as judge of the Supreme Court or as a Chief Justice till the reference was answered by the Council.
Therefore, he did not feel appropriate to sit on a bench which was to give an authoritative judgement on filing of a reference against the CJ and other important constitutional matters.
It may be mentioned that in his initial reply counsel for the President and other respondents Syed Sharifuddin Pirzada has raised several objections to the hearing of CJ's petition by the Supreme Court as SJC is already inquiring into the matter. The matter However, the petitioners argue that Supreme Court is a higher forum and it can stay proceedings of the SJC and set aside its earlier orders.
Besides Justice Iftikhar, several other legal bodies like Pakistan Bar Council, have also filed petitions in the Supreme Court on these issues. Mohammad Shoaib Shaheen has challenged the Judges compulsory leave Presidential order of 1970.
Mohammad Ahsan Bhoon and Mohammad Ashraf Khan has challenged "making HCJ as inactive, restricting his movements and sending him on forced leave. Barrister Zafarullah Khan of Wattan Party, Pakistan Bar Council, Supreme Court Bar Association, Abdul Mujeeb Pirzada and Save the Judiciary Committee has challenged the reference under Article 209 against the Honourable Chief Justice.
The government has engaged senior counsel and constitution experts like Sharifuddin Pirzada, Wasim Sajjad, Dr Khalid Ranjha and others for Law Ministers to defend it in the SJC and the Supreme Court. Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan, Munir A Malik, Hamid Khan, Qazi Anwar, Tariq Mahmood and Ali Ahmad Kurd are on the CJ's counsel.