By a vote of 4 to 1, the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) has given Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi a thorough show-cause notice in response to misconduct allegations brought against him.

By a 4-1 majority decision, the SJC, the only body authorized to investigate the behavior of superior judicial judges, ordered the jurist to respond to 10 accusations brought against him within 14 days.

Justice Ijazul Ahsan dissented from the majority ruling, while Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faiz Isa, Justice Sardar Tariq, Justice Amir Bhatti, and Justice Naeem Afghan supported the show cause notice.

Justice Naqvi had earlier challenged the SJC proceedings in a petition filed with the highest court. He asked the court to throw out the accusations of his misbehavior, saying they were “without lawful authority and of no legal effect.”

The petition, submitted in accordance with Article 184 of the Constitution, requests the annulment of the hearing notice dated November 13 and the show cause notice that was sent following the October 27 SJC meeting.

Mukhdoom Ali Khan, Khawaja Haris, Ali Zafar, Latif Khosa, and Saad Hashmi advocates are listed as signatories to the petition, along with the president of the nation, the SJC, and the federation.

According to Justice Naqvi, he has been the focus of a malicious campaign since February, when ‘false and unsubstantiated claims’ were made public and resulted in a media trial. He claims that these actions directly threaten the independence of the judiciary.

There has been a trial in the media. He declared, “The allegations and this vicious campaign are clear and obvious assaults on the independence of the judiciary.

Naqvi contended that the launched proceedings are in conflict with his fundamental constitutional rights and earlier rulings from the Supreme Court, citing the Justice Qazi Faez Isa case finding.

Earlier, on October 27, the SJC heard 29 accusations. Of those, 19 were dismissed, and Naqvi was given a notice to appear for the remaining 10, which included allegations of financial impropriety. By majority vote, the council demanded that Naqvi respond within 14 days.

On November 10, Justice Naqvi filed his answer to the show cause notice. In it, he accused three members of the SJC of bias: Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, Justice Sardar Tariq Masood, and Chief Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan of the Balochistan High Court. He also asked for their recusal.

In addition, Justice Naqvi protested to the SJC’s notice of hearing on November 13, claiming that it violated both the SJC Procedure of Enquiry, 2005, and Article 209 of the Constitution by failing to address his prior constitutional and legal objections.

He claimed that the SJC lacked jurisdiction and that the charges against him were malicious and unfounded, rendering the proceedings illegitimate from the beginning and having no legal significance.

Judge Naqvi objected, but the SJC scheduled a hearing on November 20 to consider the allegations made against him

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