The government refrained from referencing against Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth, PBC

Abid Saqi, deputy chairman of the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC), has said that the federal government should refrain from filing any reference against the Peshawar High Court Chief Justice Waqar Ahmed Seth.

It may be recalled that Chief Justice of Peshawar High Court Waqar Ahmad Seth, who headed the special court in a serious treason case against former President General (retd) Pervez Musharraf, decided to give him the death sentence.

In a statement issued in this regard, the Vice President of the Pakistan Bar Council has warned the government that if Article 209, the government takes steps to file any reference against Justice Waqar Ahmed Seth in the Supreme Judicial Council, There will be protests across the country.

When contacted on the said matter, Abid Shaqi said that the statement was issued in a warning so that the government withdrew the decision to file a reference.

In addition, a senior government official told that no serious proposal was being considered in filing a reference against Justice Waqar Ahmed Seth as the references were filed in violation of the rules, by a judge.

The statement said that the decision of the special court written by Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth on December 17, 2019, was bold and historic as it was for the first time in Pakistan's judiciary that the decision was taken to break the constitution against a military dictator.

The decision was not only welcomed but was appreciated by the entire nation, especially by the legal community, because it not only strengthened the rule of law, the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary but was also enshrined in the constitution. Also ensured continuity of democratic process.

The statement said it was thought that the federal government would decide to file a reference against Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth which is of serious concern and any such action would be based on the objective of targeting and suppressing the independence of the judiciary. ۔

It is to be remembered that the lawyer's community also reacted to references filed by the Supreme Court Justice Qazi Faiz Isa and Sindh High Court Justice K Agha for working against the rules.

It should be noted that a 10-member full bench of the Supreme Court is hearing against the filing of the presidential reference against Justice Qazi Faiz Isa.