SC warns against media attacks on judges
issues code of conduct for CJ hearing
By Our Special Correspondent

ISLAMABAD—The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued guidelines to be strictly observed to avoid any interference with the legal process regarding constitutional petitions filed by Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and others.
Any violation in this regard shall be dealt with under the law relating to contempt of court, said a Supreme Court press release. It is notified for information of the general public, the lawyers community and the print and electronic media that the Reference against Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry is sub-judice before the Supreme Judicial Council and the Constitutional Petitions on the subject are also sub-judice before the Full Court of the Supreme Court, the press release said.
“Therefore discussions, comments or write-ups which are likely to interfere with the legal process, ridicule, scandalize or malign the Court or any of its Judges, or touching the merits of the case are strictly prohibited,” it said. “Violation in this regard shall be dealt with under the law relating to Contempt of Court,” the press release said. On each date of hearing of the constitutional petitions, the members of the bar, media personnel and the litigant public visiting the Supreme Court shall abide by the following instructions: “Entry will be allowed to Advocates of the Supreme Court/Advocates-on-Record whose cases are fixed for hearing before any of the Benches on such days. Entry will also be allowed to the litigants on proof of identity.
Advocates of Supreme Court/Advocates-on-Records will be allowed to visit the Bar Room and the Court offices in connection with official business. Judges gates of all the Courts, i.e. the Supreme Court, High Courts and the Civil and the District Courts are the exclusive entry points for the honourable judges of the concerned courts and are never open to the lawyers or the members of the general public. Maintenance of the dignity and the sanctity of the Courts is legal and moral duty of the honourable members of the legal fraternity.
Therefore, members of the Bar shall ensure that no Advocate of the Supreme Court or of any other court enters, or attempts to enter the Supreme Court premises through the Judges Gate and no Advocate other than ASC/AOR enters the Supreme Court premises from any gate. No person, whether a member of legal fraternity or any one else, is allowed to raise slogans within the Supreme Court premises or at the judges entry gate and entry of members of media (print and electronic) into Court Rooms will be regulated through entry passes issued by the Registrar Supreme Court.
Federal Minister for Law, Justice and Human Rights, Muhammad Wasi Zafar has said that it has become clear from statements of Pakistan Bar Council and Supreme Court Bar Association that neither of them represent fighting lawyer’s concerns nor upholding independence of judiciary, but instead they are completely, thoroughly and deliberately involved in accomplishing political objectives of the parties of which they have become a part. He said there is no apparent reason for making such calls as all demands put forward by Bar Councils and Bar associations have been met thoroughly, said a press release here Wednesday. However, he added that only understandable reason for making such calls is merely fulfilling political agendas of parties for which they work under the guise of black-coat.