Two judges of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) have written letters expressing conflicting views on the ongoing proceedings related to a harassment complaint filed against the chief justice by Advocate Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir.
Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir, who was part of the now-defunct committee formed to examine harassment allegations against IHC CJ Justice Sarfraz Dogar, sided with the top judge. He asserted that such allegations do not fall under the purview of the workplace harassment law. In a letter, Justice Tahir clarified that the appropriate forum to address such grievances is the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC). According to sources familiar with the matter, he maintained that the competent authority had mistakenly assumed jurisdiction over the case.
The letter was circulated among judges and the chief justice shortly after the IHC administration de-notified Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz as the competent authority. In a separate letter, Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz defended her decision to assume jurisdiction, stating that a courtroom is a workplace. She argued that, as the competent authority under the Protection Against Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, she was duty-bound to entertain the complaint. She noted that while there was no specific provision for her to include herself in the inquiry committee, she did so under compelling circumstances to meet the legal requirement that the committee include a woman.
The episode took a dramatic turn when the IHC administration de-notified Justice Imtiaz and replaced her with Justice Raja Inaam Ameen Minhas as the competent authority. Justice Imtiaz suggested that her successor would complete the unfinished task, reiterating her view that judges could be tried under the Act and that Article 209 does not grant them immunity from such proceedings.
Besides seeking proceedings against the top judge under the Protection Against Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, Ms. Mazari-Hazir had also earlier approached the Supreme Judicial Council for misconduct proceedings against Justice Dogar. She again approached the judicial council after the IHC administration removed Justice Imtiaz as the competent authority.
The complaints against CJ Dogar stemmed from a heated exchange between the lawyer and the top judge last week. During the hearing, Justice Dogar had warned Ms. Mazari-Hazir of a contempt of court case and was reported to have made remarks along the lines of “getting a hold of her.”
