JUSTICE QAZI FAEZ ISA Versus The PRESIDENT OF PAKISTAN

ORDER

1. UMAR ATA BANDIAL, J.--- Civil Misc. Application No. 1243 of 2021. For reasons to be recorded later, this Misc. Application is dismissed. However, the right of the people to have access to information in matters of public importance under Article 19-A of the Constitution is recognized, the details and modalities of which are to be decided by the Full Court on the administrative side.

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3. I have given my separate note.

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6. I have attached my separate note.

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9. I have appended separate note.

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12. I have appended my reasons for the dismissal.

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16. YAHYA AFRIDI, J.---For the reasons already recorded in my judgment delivered in Constitution Petition No.17 of 2019, the present Civil Miscellaneous Application No.1243 of 2021 is dismissed, as the relief sought by the petitioner would "negate the very spirit of the oath taken by the petitioning Judge".

2. However, for the reasons to be recorded later, I find the right of the public to have access to live-streaming or audio-video recording, written transcript or any other medium, of the court hearings in the proceedings of public importance, including those under Articles 184(3) and 186 of the Constitution, is their fundamental right under Article 19A of the Constitution. The Registrar of this Court is, therefore, directed to place the matter before the Full Court for appropriate steps as it deems fit, under Article 191 of the Constitution, to effectuate this fundamental right of the public.

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18. Short Order

19. For the reasons to be recorded later, we dispose of the miscellaneous application (C.M.A. No. 1243/2021) filed by the Petitioner in review petition (C.R.P. No.296/2020) in the following terms:

(i) Article 19-A of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973 ("Constitution") creates an obligation on State institutions, including the Judiciary, to take the necessary measures to ensure realization of the fundamental right of citizens to have access to information in matters of public importance. Cases under Article 184(3) of the Constitution, including review petitions and other matters arising therein, are matters of public importance, and the public has a right to know and see how proceedings in these cases are conducted and concluded by the Court. We, therefore, hold that Live Streaming (audio and video) of court hearings of these cases should be made available for information of the public through a link on the official website of this Court, and for this purpose the Registrar of this Court should take steps to provide for the requisite technological infrastructure and make arrangements for necessary amendments in the Rules under Article 191 of the Constitution to regulate its practice and procedure in this regard;

(ii) Keeping in view the current state of technological infrastructure available in this Court and the fact that the review petitions filed in the case are fixed for hearing, we direct the audio recording of the proceedings of the court hearings of the said review petitions to be made available to the public through a link on the official website of this Court. The Registrar of this Court shall ensure that the un-edited audio recording of the proceedings of the court hearing of the review petitions is made available to the public on the official website of the Court on the same day soon after the hearing and before the close of the working hours.

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21. (Maqbool Baqar, J.)

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23. (Manzoor Ahmad Malik, J.)

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25. (Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel, J.)

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27. (Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, J.)

28. ORDER OF THE BENCH:

29. By majority of 6 to 4 (Maqbool Baqar, J; Manzoor Ahmad Malik, J; Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel, J and Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, J dissenting), Civil Misc. Application No.1243 of 2021 is dismissed.

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35. MWA/J-4/SC Application dismissed.