SC reinstates National Accountability Bureau amendments law

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday reinstated the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) amendments law by accepting the federal government’s review petition.

The judgment, reserved by a five-member SC bench on June 6, was unanimously passed with a 5-0 decision, led by Justice Qazi Faez Isa. Justice Athar Minallah also contributed an additional note to the ruling.

In its brief verdict, the SC noted that further details would be provided later.

Both the federal and provincial governments had filed intra-court appeals against the declaration that the NAB amendments were unconstitutional.

The Supreme Court had reserved its decision on the federal government’s appeal on June 6.

It’s worth noting that the apex court had previously struck down amendments to NAB laws in response to a plea by the founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

In a 2-1 majority ruling, the SC had accepted former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s challenge to the amendments made to accountability laws during the previous Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)-led government.

The court also reinstated corruption cases against public officials that had been dismissed after the NAB law amendments.