AJK SC reserves verdict in case of refugee seats in legislative assembly 

The Supreme Court (SC) of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) on Saturday reserved its verdict on the presidential reference seeking its opinion on 12 seats reserved for refugees in the AJK Legislative Assembly, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

A two-member bench of the AJK SC, headed by Chief Justice Raja Saeed Akram, heard the reference.

Another judge on the bench was Justice Khalid Yousaf Chaudhry.

The apex court will formally convey to the AJK president its constitutional opinion on the reference tomorrow.

Speaking during the hearing, senior legal expert Raja Sajjad Ahmad Khan Advocate opined that under Article 33 of the constitution, legislation was the sole prerogative of the legislative assembly, and that members of the assembly had clearly given their opinion on the matter at an All-Parties Conference.

He was of the view that the matter should have been taken up by a high-powered committee for deliberation.

Barrister Humayun Nawaz, Raja Sadaqat Hussain and Sardar Abdur Razzaq also gave their arguments on the occasion, while former AJK PM Raja Farooq Haider Khan and a member of the assembly Abdul Majid Khan remained present during the hearing.

The court tried to find an answer to the question that whether 12 seats reserved for refugees could be changed without constitutional amendment.

The AJK government had on Thursday filed a reference in the AJK SC under the constitutional provisions seeking constitutional and legal opinion from the apex court regarding refugee seats in the legislative Assembly.

The reference has been sent through the presidential office asking the apex forum to provide legal opinion regarding the constitutional position of 12 refugee seats elected from outside of the territorial jurisdiction of AJK and the framework to change the position of these seats in the legislative Assembly.

Reporter: Hashir Warraich