A state of anticipation prevails in the political circles in Pakistan, where attention now turns to the Supreme Court, which has the decision to decide the fate of Prime Minister Imran Khan, whose party blocked the vote of no-confidence, and parliament was dissolved in a surprising move.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan is the highest court in the judicial hierarchy in Pakistan established in accordance with Part VII of the Pakistani Constitution.

high authorities

The Court has final and original appellate powers, as well as advisory powers in all courts, including Supreme Courts, District Courts, Special Courts and the Federal Sharia Court, involving cases of federal laws, and the Court may act on judgments on cases in the context in which it has jurisdiction .

Under the court system of Pakistan, the Supreme Court is the final arbiter of legal and constitutional disputes as well as the ultimate interpreter of constitutional law.

The Supreme Court in its modern composition shall consist of the Chief Justice of Pakistan, 16 judges and two ad litem judges whose appointment shall be confirmed by the President upon their nomination by the Prime Minister on the basis of their due qualifications.

Once appointed, judges complete a specified period and then retire, unless their term of office expires through resignation or dismissal by the Supreme Judicial Council.

Judges are often classified as having conservative, textual, moderate, and liberal philosophies in their judicial interpretation of law and court rulings.

The Supreme Court has a permanent seat on Al-Dustour Street in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad.

The Supreme Court is sometimes referred to colloquially as 'SCOPE'.

Indian High Courts

1861: The British government in India issued the Indian High Courts Act, according to which the High Courts were established throughout the Indian subcontinent in the various provinces, while the High Courts in Calcutta, Bombay, Mudarres and Lahore were abolished, and the Panchayati system was also abolished and organized in an independent presidency. .

These new high courts had discriminatory powers as the highest courts in all cases.

1935: The Government of India Act was promulgated and the Federal Court was established.

The Federal Court had a wide range of powers in the jurisdictions including to resolve disputes between provinces, the Presidency, and cases of the British Government in India, and often allowed appeals against judgments of higher courts.

The first chief judge

1947: After the independence of Pakistan in the wake of the British partition of India, the Federal Court was divided between India and Pakistan, and according to this division, Judge Sir Hilal Kanya became the first judge of the Supreme Court in India, and Mian Abdul Rashid became the first chief justice in Pakistan.

The cultural traditions of British law have formed an integral part of the Pakistani judiciary.

1956: Ratification of Pakistan's constitution re-establishes the Supreme Court to replace the name "Federal Court", initially based in Karachi where the Supreme Court of Sindh is now located.

In successive years, the Supreme Court was moved to Lahore, until it was permanently moved to its new building in Islamabad in 1964.

1993: Court invalidates President Ghulam Ishaq Khan's April decision to dissolve the government of Nawaz Sharif, who resigned after negotiating a settlement that also impeached the president, in July.

October 12, 1999: General Pervez Musharraf led a military coup that brought him to power. Several months later, the Supreme Court recognized the legitimacy of the coup, and set the last date for holding general elections and restoring civil order in October 2002.

Musharraf and Bhutto

April 2001: The Supreme Court deemed some provisions of General Pervez Musharraf's anti-corruption decree illegal, and the court overturned the April 1999 ruling against former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and her husband on corruption charges.

- The court clearly accused Judge Malik Muhammad Qayyum of being biased towards the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and said, "We are convinced that the trial was not fair and the ruling was invalid due to the bias of the Anti-Corruption Court."

March 9, 2007: President Pervez Musharraf decides to remove Iftikhar Chaudhry from the presidency of the Supreme Court.

July 20, 2007: The Supreme Court ruled to reinstate Chaudhry, but the authorities blocked the implementation of the decision.

November 25, 2007: Nawaz Sharif returned to Pakistan, ending his exile in Saudi Arabia, after the Supreme Court issued a decision allowing him and his family to return to the country.

- March 22, 2009: Judge Iftikhar Chaudhry returned to his position as head of the Supreme Court after the government overturned the decision to dismiss him.

May 26, 2009: The Supreme Court issued a ruling suspending the work of a decision depriving former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his brother Shahbaz from running in the legislative elections, which opens the way for him to compete for the position of Prime Minister in the 2013 elections.

National Reconciliation Law

2009: The Supreme Court repealed the National Reconciliation Law, which had written off the corruption files of a number of Pakistani politicians, and ordered the opening of those files that had been crossed out.

- Among these files is a corruption file in which President Asif Ali Zardari is accused of transferring public funds to accounts in Switzerland.

2010: The Geneva Prosecutor decided that the file against Zardari, who is president, could not be reopened because he enjoyed immunity.

April 2012: The court charges Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani with violating its orders by refusing to reopen a lawsuit in Switzerland against President Asif Ali Zardari for corruption.

June 19, 2012: The Supreme Court orders the dismissal of Gilani and asks President Zardari to appoint a new prime minister.

April 16, 2015: The Supreme Court ordered the suspension of death sentences issued by the newly established military courts after the increase in armed violence, while at the same time raising concern about their impartiality and the scope of their military powers.

July 28, 2017: Nawaz Sharif resigned from his position as Prime Minister after the Supreme Court indicted him on charges of corruption related to the Panama Papers leaks, tax evasion and disqualification from remaining in office.

July 5, 2018: Musharraf is sentenced by the Supreme Court to 10 years in prison on corruption charges.

January 6, 2022: Judge Aisha Malik is appointed as a member of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, becoming the first woman to hold this position since the country was founded in 1947.