In a significant move, the Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) has removed its Additional Registrar (Judicial) over serious lapses in case management, leading to misallocation of crucial constitutional matters. The issue arose when a batch of cases challenging the vires of the Customs Act, 1969 was mistakenly placed before a regular bench instead of the Constitutional Bench, causing unnecessary delays and resource wastage.
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Judicial Scrutiny Uncovers Serious Lapses: The Supreme Court discovered the mismanagement during hearings on January 13, 2025, when the constitutionality of Section 11A of the Customs Act was challenged. The jurisdiction of the bench was contested, and the cases were adjourned to January 16, 2025. Realizing the mistake, the Judicial Branch referred the matter to a regular Committee under Section 2(1) of the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act, 2023.
On January 17, 2025, the Committee, chaired by the Chief Justice of Pakistan, ruled that all cases concerning Article 191A of the Constitution—which vests jurisdiction exclusively in the Constitutional Bench—must be handled accordingly. The Committee withdrew the wrongly placed cases and reassigned them to the Constitutional Bench, ensuring proper case allocation moving forward.
Stricter Case Management & Increased Oversight: The Registrar of the Supreme Court was directed to expedite scrutiny of pending cases to prevent similar lapses. Furthermore, the Constitutional Bench Committee decided that all petitions challenging the 26th Constitutional Amendment would be heard on January 27, 2025, by a bench comprising eight Supreme Court judges.
Contempt Proceedings & Removal of Additional Registrar: A regular bench led by Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi initiated contempt proceedings against the Additional Registrar (Judicial). However, due to his sick leave, Registrar Supreme Court Muhammad Salim Khan appeared before the court, arguing that the misallocation was an administrative mistake rather than an intentional act.
Despite this defense, the Supreme Court officially removed the Additional Registrar (Judicial) and directed the Registrar Supreme Court to dedicate more resources to the scrutiny and timely processing of pending cases. This decisive action underscores the SCP’s commitment to ensuring judicial efficiency and preventing procedural errors that inconvenience litigants and the legal community.
With Pakistan’s legal landscape undergoing significant changes, this move marks a strong step towards greater accountability and transparency in the country’s highest judicial institution.
