Particular bench

Though the crucial decision about the fate of the Punjab government was announced and done away with but the controversy regarding appointing a particular bench of judges may have lingering effects that may further complicate judicial matters. It is now an open debate that the remit of superior judiciary has been arbitrarily extended much to the detriment of the dispensation of justice itself. Lately the discrepancies detected in such matters came to the fore when the coalition government decided to file a petition in the Supreme Court for the formation of a full court bench to hear cases related to the interpretation of Article 63-A of the Constitution, related to the status of defecting lawmakers. Unfortunately, the SC did not accede to this request resulting in an unprecedented boycott of the judicial proceedings relating to the case about the election of CM Punjab. The dissension in the ranks of higher judiciary has been further complicated due to an open letter written to the chief justice by Justice Qazi Faez Isa, senior puisne judge of the SC, pointing out to the irregularities witnessed in the affairs of the apex judiciary. It is quite worrying to notice the growing conflict between the crucial segments of the state that may cause incalculable harm. TW