The Intelligence Bureau (IB) has submitted an application to the Supreme Court, expressing its intention to withdraw its review petition concerning the Faizabad sit-in verdict.
In a plea filed on Tuesday, IB’s Deputy Director Amjad Iqbal formally requested the apex court to permit the withdrawal of its review plea and accept the associated miscellaneous application.
The plea stated unequivocally, “The petitioner intends to withdraw the civil review petition and does not want to pursue the matter in the above-titled case.”
This move comes after the Supreme Court announced last week that it would revisit the Faizabad sit-in case on September 28 in response to a series of review petitions challenging its previous ruling.
The review proceedings will be heard by a three-member bench comprising Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan, and Justice Athar Minallah.
In a related development, Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, the chief of the Awami Muslim League (AML), whose lawyer had also filed a petition seeking an adjournment of the Faizabad sit-in verdict review case, cited his unavailability.
The petition noted that Sheikh Rashid’s lawyer, Amanullah Kanrani, had been appointed as a provincial law minister, rendering him unable to appear in the Faizabad sit-in case.
This legal saga traces its origins back to April 15, 2019, when various entities, including the then-federal government, the Defence Ministry, the Intelligence Bureau, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) government, AML chief Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, the Mutahidda Qaumi Movement (MQM), and the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra), among others, filed review pleas contesting the Supreme Court’s initial judgment.
The Supreme Court’s involvement in the Faizabad sit-in case dates back to February 6, 2019, when a two-member bench, comprised of the current Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Mushir Alam, recommended stringent action against individuals issuing edicts or fatwas that could harm others or put them in harm’s way.
