ISLAMABAD Federation of Pakistan has filed a review petition against the short order of Supreme Court in National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) case, arguing that the apex court failed to consider the doctrine of past and closed transactions while handing down the verdict on December 16, 2009. By virtue of the doctrine of the tracheotomy of powers, the SC made a mistake in Para 14 (IX) of the short order in holding that it had the power to issue directions or orders to the Federal Government to review requests, claims and status of cases proceedings outside of Pakistan whose decision to revive or otherwise falls within the exclusive purview of the executive, it was the gist of grounds under which the petition was filed in the apex court here Saturday. The federal government also argued in its plea that by virtue of international law doctrine of extra territoriality, the court order erred at Para 14 (IX) of the short order in holding that it had the power to direct the federal government to revive requests and status of cases outside Pakistan. It is argued in the plea further that SC erred in Para 14 (XI) in holding that the named NAB functionaries should transmit periodical reports of the actions taken by them in monitoring cell of court unless this only referred to reports concerning the progress of the judicial proceedings. The petition was filed under Article 188 of the Constitution read with order XXVI Rule 1, of the apex court rules, 1980 for review of the short order in the constitutional petition No 76/2007. The plea was filed through the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs here on Saturday. Barrister Kamal Azfar filed the appeal on part of the government, pleading the apex court to review the verdict regarding Swiss accounts and re-opening of cases under the NRO. The verdict had also ordered reopening of criminal and corruption cases against bureaucrats and politicians including President Asif Ali Zardari. The government had appointed the Advocate on Record Raja Abdul Ghafoor to file the review petition against the verdicts short order last week. An appeal was also filed on part of NAB Chairman Navid Ahsan and Additional Prosecutor General Abdul Baseer Qureshi Saturday for review of the NRO verdict. The NAB officials requested the court to omit the remarks in the NRO case verdict against the NAB and its high officials. According to Supreme Court rules, January 16 was declared deadline for filing a review petition to challenge the courts verdict. The grounds under which all applications were filed here on Saturday argued that the SC as a matter of law erred in Para13 of the short order in considering facts whilst acting in its constitutional jurisdiction especially in an unopposed petition. The applications also said that the apex court erred as a matter of law in holding at Para 14 (VII) of the short order that convictions in absentia still hold the field bearing in mind its own judgment in an earlier case and the settled legal position in Pakistan vis-a-vis that an accused cannot be convicted in absentia. The then Attorney General (AG) needed to show to the SC an order to address communication to various authorities/courts and foreign countries including Switzerland, the plea further said. The apex court did not fully appreciate that on the same logic the original request by the then AGP in the year 1997 addressed to the Swiss authorities to institute proceedings was without lawful authority and of no legal effect, the federation also argued in the plea further. NAB initiated the proceedings of the cases and through its investigative and other wings, they argued saying, According to Pakistani common law system the judiciary is not a part of the investigative phase of any accusation, it was further argued. Earlier, Former Attorney General, Malik Qayyum, through his counsel Wasim Sajjad had filed a review petition in the SC to clear his name as mentioned in the short order. It is also pertinent to mention here that a 17-member larger bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary, declared the NRO unconstitutional and illegal. The apex court in its remarks in NRO case verdict said that the NAB tried to mislead the court. The court was pleaded to hear the viewpoint of the government on the orders regarding Swiss cases and re-opening of the closed cases.