Islamabad, Jun 19 (PTI) Pakistan's Supreme Court on Monday reserved its judgement on pleas against a law modifying the review procedure of judgments of the apex court.

The Supreme Court (Review of Judgements and Orders) Act 2023 passed by Parliament widened the scope of review in cases decided under Article 184(3) of the Constitution, also called suo motu or original jurisdiction.

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Several petitions were filed against the law, as it was deemed to infringe the powers of the court which cannot be changed by a simple act and needed a constitutional amendment.

A three-member bench of the apex court led by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial and comprising Justice Munib Akhtar and Justice Ijazul Ahsan heard the case along with the Election Commission of Pakistan's (ECP) review against the verdict fixing May 14 as the date for holding Punjab Assembly elections.

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The two cases were clubbed in May by the chief justice when the newly enacted Supreme Court (Review of Judgements and Orders) Act 2023 became effective.

At the previous hearing, the CJP had observed that laws like the Supreme Court (Review of Judgements and Orders) Act, 2023 should have been enacted after taking advice from people like the attorney general for Pakistan (AGP), who have experience with litigation.

AGP Mansoor Awan said, during the hearing on Monday, that the new law tried to correct the perception of violation of people who were convicted under article 184 (3) and had no right of appeal against it.

He said Parliament was empowered to legislate and the Supreme Court had upheld it in its several judgements.

The chief justice said that the government can legislate but the question was giving the right of appeal in cases under Article 184(3) cases.

Giving an example of India, he said there was no right of direct revisional appeal in Article 184(3) like cases in India.

At the conclusion of the arguments, the chief justice observed that the judges would consult with each other and give a decision soon.

“We will announce the verdict after discussing it among ourselves. Let's see what happens,” Justice Bandial was quoted as saying by Dawn newspaper.

Called the Supreme Court (Review of Judgements and Orders) Act 2023, the new law is aimed at facilitating and strengthening the apex court in the exercise of its powers to review its judgements.

The law is considered as controversial as it gives a right of appeal to those convicted in a suo motu action and possibly get relief.

They also include former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who was disqualified by the court in 2017.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)