'We cannot close our eyes,' Justice Minallah on human rights violation in Pakistan

Supreme Court Judge Justice Athar Minallah on Wednesday admitted rights violations in Pakistan.

During the hearing of the suo moto notice on the IHC judges' letter, Justice Minallah said we cannot close our eyes to rights violations.

Let us not close our eyes, we have to accept the reality, the SC Judge said on the rights violations in Pakistan.

The hearing was conducted by a seven-member SC bench headed by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa and comprising six other judges — Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhel, Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Musarrat Hilali and Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan.

Earlier, Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa remarked that the Supreme Court would not tolerate any interference in judicial affairs and is taking the letter by Islamabad High Court judges “very seriously”.

The chief justice further remarked that the letter mentions the Supreme Judicial Council, indicating that it does not address the Supreme Court.

CJP Isa’s remark came during the hearing of SC’s suo motu notice taken on the letter written by Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges that cites complaints of alleged interference in judicial affairs by intelligence agencies.