Tehreek-i-Tahaffuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan (TTAP) Vice Chairman Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar on Thursday filed an appeal against the Supreme Court (SC) registrar’s decision to return his petition seeking a full court hearing of challenges against the 26th Constitutional Amendment.
The 26th Amendment, passed on Oct 21, 2024, took away the SC’s suo motu powers and empowered a Special Parliamentary Committee to nominate the next Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) from among the three most senior SC judges instead of the senior-most one.
The SC is currently seized with multiple petitions urging the constitution of a full court to hear the matter rather than the Constitutional Bench (CB) formed under the 26th Amendment. The CB is set to resume proceedings on the original appeals on October 7 (Tuesday).
“I’ve filed an appeal against the registrar’s decision to return my petition, seeking justice once again. My petition argues that the majority decision of the Practice & Procedure Committee remains valid in law and cases related to the 26th should only be heard by a full court,” Khokhar said on X.
The appeal, filed through Advocate Shahid Jamil Khan, requested the SC to set aside the September 19 decision and “register and entertain the said petition in accordance with law”.
The plea was filed under Rule 3 of the Supreme Court Rules and named the apex court’s registrar office as a respondent.
The appeal contended that the registrar had “no jurisdiction to determine the maintainability or entertainability of a petition under Article 184(3), as such questions can only be decided by this Hon’ble Court in exercise of its judicial authority”.
It argued that even if a petition appeared non-maintainable under the Constitution, law or the SC Rules, the “issue must be placed before the court for adjudication on the judicial side”.
“The registrar, acting on the administrative side, cannot assume or exercise judicial powers, nor can he refuse to receive or register a petition or appeal on the ground of perceived non-maintainability,” the former senator contended.
Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi had ignored a decision made in October 2024 by a committee to bring challenges to the 26th Amendment before the full court, according to minutes of the communication exchange between CJP and two senior SC judges.
The committee, which met on Oct 31, 2024 under the Practice and Procedure Act (PPA) 2023, was convened by senior puisne judge Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Munib Akhtar. In response, CJP Afridi, who chairs the committee, said he did not find it appropriate to call for a full court hearing.
In separate minutes dated May 20, 2025, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah stressed the need for meaningful consultation, which he stated was the core purpose of the PPA. Justice Shah noted that delegating powers to the SC’s registrar was not covered by the act.
Since October 2024, multiple petitions have been filed with the SC challenging the amendment, contending that it “abrogates, repeals, alters and destroys the basic features of the Constitution” and “violates” fundamental rights.
An eight-member CB, headed by Justice Aminuddin Khan, will resume hearing a set of petitions against the 26th Amendment on Tuesday.
The bench also includes Justices Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Ayesha A. Malik, Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Musarrat Hilali, Naeem Akhtar Afghan and Shahid Bilal Hassan.
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