Islamabad: The differences found among the judges of the Supreme Court on the hearing of petitions challenging the 26th Constitutional Amendment in Islamabad came to light. The written letter of Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Yahya Afridi and documents related to the opinions of the judges were made public.
According to the documents, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Muneeb Akhtar convened a committee meeting on October 31 in the absence of the Chief Justice and fixed the matter for November 4 before the full court. However, the Chief Justice objected and said that according to the Constitution, only a constitutional bench can hear Article 184 petitions.
The Chief Justice said that 9 out of 13 judges are in favor of a constitutional bench instead of a full court, while two judges demanded a full court hearing again. Finally, the Chief Justice sent the decision to the constitutional bench.