ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial said on Thursday the Supreme Court could not compel the government or coalition parties to negotiate with the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), as a three-judge bench resumed hearing the election delay case.
The bench, led by the chief justice and comprising Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Munib Akhtar, adjourned the hearing within an hour, with Justice Bandial announcing that a detailed order would be released later.
Ahead of the hearing, several politicians and lawyers — including Shah Mahmood Qureshi of PTI, Law Minister Azam Nazir Tarar, Mian Aslam Iqbal of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), and Attorney General Mansoor Usman Awan — were present.
At the previous hearing, the court had urged political parties to conduct talks by April 26 and respond by April 27 in hopes of reaching a consensus to avoid further delays to the May 14 election date.
The court emphasised that the order was binding on all authorities, and the parties were asked to promptly resolve the matter.
However, the government failed to comply with the April 4 directive, and no talks were held. National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf wrote a letter to the chief justice, saying that “it is best to leave the resolution of political matters to parliament and political parties.”
AGP Awan updated the court on the progress of negotiations between the government and opposition parties. According to him, the first contact between the government and the opposition took place on April 19, and it was decided that a meeting would be held on April 26.
The AGP explained that a committee for political dialogue was formed by Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjarani and both sides were asked to nominate four representatives each.
However, the chief justice questioned the legitimacy of the Senate chairman’s role in the negotiations, noting that he was not a representative of either the government or the opposition.
The chief justice emphasized that the court could not force the government to hold negotiations, but said that it only wanted the implementation of the constitution to find a way out of the current crisis.
The lawyer for Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Farooq H. Naek, suggested that negotiations should only be held by political parties, and that the Senate chairman was only playing the role of a facilitator.
Qureshi, who was also present at the hearing, revealed that despite being nominated for talks, no one had reached out to him yet. He expressed his disappointment with the recent National Assembly session, saying that it was a violation of parliamentary rules to discuss a matter that was being discussed in court.
While Naek questioned who was looking down on the parliament and the court, the chief justice emphasised the need for patience when it comes to negotiations. The court only provided advice, he said, and it would be business as usual if a consensus for the protection of national interest and the constitution was not reached.
The hearing was subsequently adjourned, with the chief justice saying that political matters should only be solved by talks. A detailed verdict is expected to be released later. Meanwhile, Awan assured the court that efforts were being made to hold the first meeting between the government and the opposition that day.
