Talking to Business Recorder, Munib Ahmed Khan, former Chief Justice of Sindh High Court, said that the Supreme Court has inherent jurisdiction to transfer cases from one province to another in dispensation of justice.
He said that for recording of statement or collection of documents, the apex court has the power to constitute a commission.
Article 187 (1) of Constitution says: "Supreme Court shall have power to issue such directions, orders or decrees as may be necessary for doing complete justice in any case or matter pending before it, including an order for the purpose of securing the attendance of any person or the discovery or production of any document."
Former Justice Munib Ahmed said the apex court also has the power to dismiss an administration," adding if it can restore an elected government dismissed by the President, then it also has the power to dismiss an elected government.
The apex court in 1993 had restored Nawaz Sharif government, which was dismissed by the then President Ghulam Ishaq Khan.
Federal Minister for Law and Justice Farogh Naseem while talking to Business Recorder said whosoever is the investigative agency - whether it is National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Federal Investigative Agency (FIA) or Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) - it has to perform its duty in accordance with the law and efforts should be made to ensure that there is no perception of victimization.
He said that in this case there is enough evidence already procured by agencies of money laundering in the form of bank transactions that they could well proceed with the matter.
"As the case is of mega corruption and money laundering therefore it could be shifted from banking court to the Accountability Court if the Supreme Court orders NAB to proceed with the matter," he added.
Sardar Aslam, former Chief Justice of Islamabad High Court, told Business Recorder that though Supreme Court has the power to transfer cases yet it has to proceed with the matter cautiously, adding the government in Sindh was elected by the people of that province.
He said that if those whose names appear in JIT report on fake accounts contest the Supreme Court's power to hear this case under Article 184(3) and ask the chief justice to constitute a full court bench then an odd situation could emerge as many judges of the Supreme Court are not in favour of hearing cases under suo motu jurisdiction which are related to the exercise of executive power.
Ramzan Chaudhry, a former judge IHC, said that institutions should not come under pressure of anyone and must perform their constitutional role in the discharge of their lawful responsibility. He said in Panama papers case the investigative agencies performed their function as per law and there was no resistance from the sitting government.
He stated that if any institution resists or creates hurdles in the course of investigation, the investigating agencies can report the matter to the Supreme Court, which could assign a monitoring judge as it did in Panama case.
On December 24, the Supreme Court had directed the Zardari Group, Omni Group and others to file their comments on the JIT report by December 31. The JIT report submitted in the top court held Zardari and Omni group responsible in the mega money laundering and fake accounts case.
JIT in its report had recommended NAB cases and freezing of assets of Zardari Group and its front companies. The JIT members also suggested that all those involved in money laundering be placed on Exit Control List (ECL).
The federal government on Friday released a list of 172 suspects whose names have been placed on the ECL. Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry had announced the government's decision to put 172 individuals on the ECL, in view of the report submitted by the JIT in the long-running money laundering case.
The FIA is investigating 32 in relation to money laundering from fictitious accounts, including Zardari and his sister Faryal Talpur. Zardari's close aide Hussain Lawai was arrested in July in connection with the probe.
The former president's other close aide and Omni Group chairman Anwar Majeed and his son, Abdul Ghani, were arrested by FIA in August.
Around 32 'Benami' accounts at some private banks were opened in 2013, 2014 and 2015 from where transactions worth billions of rupees were made, according to the report.
The JIT recently observed that the investigation may be further referred to banking courts, NAB, FIA and that it was up to the apex court to decide the matter based on the JIT findings.