Charge against columnist: SC decline to adjourn hearing of contempt case
ISLAMABAD: A 12-memher bench of the Supreme Court on Monday declined to adjourn the hearing of a contempt of court case against a newspaper columnist, Ardeshir Cowasjee, and indicated that it would give its decision on Tuesday.
Chief justice Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui observed that the respondent had repeated in his written statement what he was attributed to have said in the television programme and the court considered it contempt of the court.
As the proceedings progressed the exchanges became fierce and at one stage tempers were so high that senior position judge, justice Irshad Hasan Khan, had to intervene and ask the members of the bar and the bench not to loose their cool.
Barrister Abdul Hafeez Pirzada asked the court to adjourn the proceedings for at least a few days as he was not used to arguing in a charged atmosphere.
The court declined the request resolutely.
The court first heard the deputy attorney general Tanveer Basheer, and the amicus curiae Sharifuddin Pirzada.
The case was taken up by the apex court itself issuing notice to Mr Cowasjee to explain why contempt of court proceedings should not be initiated against him for making derogatory remarks about the judiciary in a television programme.
The bench consisted of Chief justice Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui, Justice Irshad Hasan Khan, Justice Raja Afrasiab Khan, Justice Bashir Jehangiri, Justice Nasir Aslam Zahid, Justice Munawar Ahmed Mirza, Justice Khalilur Rehman Khan, Justice Abdur Rehman Khan, Justice, Sheikh Riaz Ahmed, Justice Chaudhry Mohammad Arif and Justice Munir A. Sheikh.
Source: Dawn
Date:10/26/1999
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