Pakistan SC adjourns hearing on Speaker's ruling till Tuesday

Islamabad, April 4 The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Monday adjourned the hearing of the suo motu case pertaining to the ruling issued by the National Assembly Speaker which dismissed the no-confidence motion on account of being allegedly sponsored by a foreign power, media reports said.

Earlier in the day, Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial said the Supreme Court will announce a "reasonable" order in the case on Monday, Express Tribune reported.

As it adjourned the case, the top court said that it could not decide on the case without listening to everyone. "The ruling cannot come out of thin air," CJ Bandial said as he adjourned the case till Tuesday.

Farook H. Naek argued before the court on Monday for two hours whereas Raza Rabbani and Makhdoom Ali Khan still have to present their arguments. Naik urged court to decide on the case Monday but the court said it needed more time to hear the arguments of other lawyers.

On Sunday, Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri dismissed the no-confidence motion against Pakistan PM Imran Khan citing Article 5. Subsequently, Pak President Arif Alvi dissolved the National Assembly on the advice of the Prime Minister.

As a constitutional crisis gripped the country, the apex court took a suo motu notice to resolve the matter. As the hearing started on Monday, a petition filed by the opposition seeking the formation of a full bench to hear the case was dismissed as the CJP said that the formation of a full bench would create delays in other cases.

As he asked Naek if he had any objections over the five-member bench, Naek said he had full confidence in all judges on the bench.