The ruling Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) coalition has decided to express no confidence in the three-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, reported the 24NewsHD TV channel. 

The leaders of the PDM met on Saturday with PM Shehbaz in the chair in Lahore. They discussed the prevailing political crisis in the country and cases being heard at the Supreme Court.

Former President Asif Ali Zardari, PDM chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Maryam Nawaz Sharif, and other leaders participated in the meeting. The meeting was held through a video link.

During the meeting, it was unanimously decided to boycott the three-judge Supreme Court bench hearing the election delay case. 

In the consultative meeting, the leaders held that a larger bench of the Supreme Court has already dismissed the election petitions by a majority of four judges against three. 

“The Chief Justice wants to impose a minority decision on the majority.” 

 References filed under Article 209 of the Pakistan Bar Council and other Bar Associations should be processed, it maintained. 

The meeting raised the question that the bench headed by the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Qazi Faiz Isa, has ordered to stop the hearing of all the cases under 184 (3). 

Conflicting court decisions have created an unworkable and complicated situation. Everyone must also respect the decision of Justice Qazi Faiz Isa’s bench, the meeting added.  

The apex court is hearing a case over the delay in elections to the Punjab Assembly amid controversy over the suo motu notice taken in this regard.

The former prime minister Nawaz Sharif pitched the strategy during the meeting convened at the PM’s residence in Model Town to deliberate ways to create counterweights for Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) mounting legal pressure on the government. 

The meeting, according to sources, was held to hear from Nawaz whether the government should cooperate or not with the ongoing judicial procedure.

As per sources, Nawaz's blunt opinion was: “There is no expectation of justice from the three-member bench”. 

The consultative meeting agreed that the Attorney General of Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan would appear in the court and expressed no confidence in the three-member bench.

Sources said the PDM leadership also seconded the advice to boycott the bench, which was ratified by Nawaz, who reiterated that there was no other option left to control the damage than boycotting the bench.

Nawaz was also quoted as saying that the non-formation of a full court bench against the justified demand of the government was indicative of a certain agenda.

PM Shehbaz's government is currently involved in a row with the Supreme Court over the holding of snap polls in two provinces where former leader Imran Khan had dissolved the local governments earlier this year in a bid to force early elections.

In the meeting, it is reiterated that the general elections would be held jointly. It is economically not viable to hold the snap elections first and then have another general election this year, it added. 

The meeting considered the overall situation of the country in detail and consulted on the future strategy.

The meeting demanded that elections should be held on the same day across the country. This is the basic constitutional requirement of conducting impartial, transparent, and free elections.

The meeting made it clear that the conspiracy to create a permanent political and constitutional crisis in the country is not acceptable. 

The huddle expressed its annoyance over the nonpolitical attitude of PTI which is attacking state institutions with armed persons and mobs.