ISLAMABAD - The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Thursday barred the entry of operatives of intelligence agencies within the premises of courtroom.
IHC judge Justice Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri took the decision which was confirmed by a police official posted at the IHC. The decision was taken after a letter by six IHC judges was sent to the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) alleging interference of intelligence agencies in the affairs of the courts. It was March 26 when six judges of the IHC including Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, Justice Babar Sattar, Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan, Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir and Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz has written a letter to the SJC, led by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, expressing concerns about the “interference” of intelligence agencies in the affairs of the courts.
The judges underscored the absence of clear guidelines within the council’s prescribed code of conduct for judges regarding the appropriate response to incidents that encroach upon judicial independence.
The judge stated in the letter that they are writing to seek guidance from the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) with regard to the duty of a judge to report and respond to actions on part of “members of the executive, including operatives of intelligence agencies, that seek to interfere with discharge of his/her official functions and qualify as intimidation, as well as the duty to report any such actions that come to his/her attention in relation to colleagues and/or members of the courts that the High Court supervises.”