Seven-judge constitutional bench assumes full court role

ISLAMABAD: In a loud and clear message, the seven-judge constitutional bench on Tuesday clarified that, for all practical purposes, it functions as the full court for hearing constitutional matters.

The observation appears to resolve uncertainty surrounding the handling of constitutional cases which, before the passage of the 26th Constitutional Amendment, were heard by the full court comprising all available Supreme Court judges. One such case is the reserved seats verdict, which was heard by a full court comprising 13 judges...