ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top court on Tuesday resumed the hearing of a case involving accusations by six high court judges of interference and intimidation by the country’s powerful intelligence agencies in judicial matters.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan took up the case after six out of the eight Islamabad High Court judges accused the military’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency of intimidating and coercing them over legal cases, particularly those with significant political consequences.

The judges provided various examples of alleged interference, including a case concerning Pakistan’s imprisoned former prime minister, Imran Khan. They also mentioned incidents where they said their relatives were abducted and tortured, and their homes were secretly surveilled, aiming to coerce them into delivering favorable judgments in specific cases.

Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa, who has repeatedly noted that judicial meddling would not be tolerated, mentioned that such interference could occur in multiple ways.

“Interference can be from within and without, from intelligence agencies, from one’s colleagues and family members or from social media,” he said.

He maintained that judgments and court orders “shout” on their own if there has been interference.

The CJP initially constituted a seven-member bench that last heard the matter on April 3. However, the bench had to be reconstituted after Justice Yahya Afridi recused himself.

Prior to that, the top Supreme Court judge also discussed the matter with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, during which it was decided to form an inquiry commission.

However, a former Pakistan chief justice, Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, who was asked to head the commission, recused himself, asking the Supreme Court to deal with the issue on an institutional level.

PESHAWAR: The death toll from rain-related incidents in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province since Apr. 10 has surged to 92 while the number of injured has increased to 116, a spokesperson of the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) confirmed on Tuesday. 

The rains which began on Apr. 10 have destroyed 4,200 houses and damaged 5,900 others, PDMA spokesperson Anwar Shehzad shared. At least 17 people have been killed and 23 injured in rain-related incidents over the past three days, as per data from the PDMA’s latest report on Tuesday. 

The report said the 17 dead included nine men, three women and five children while the 23 injured included nine men, three women and 11 children. Deaths and financial losses due to heavy rains were reported in Bajaur, Swat, Mansehra, Battagram, Dir Lower, Malakand, Lakki Marwat, Shangla, Mohmand and South Waziristan districts, the PDMA report added. 

“At least 92 persons have died including women, children, and elderly people while 116 others were wounded since Apr. 10 in incidents involving roof collapse and lightning in parts of the province,” Shehzad told Arab News.

The PDMA’s report said the authority, district administrations and relief teams are engaged in relief activities in the affected districts. “The PDMA has also directed district administrations of the affected districts to provide immediate financial support to the victims,” it added. 

Pakistan has received heavy rains this month that have triggered landslides and flash floods in several parts of the country.

The eastern province of Punjab has reported 21 lighting- and roof collapse-related deaths, while Balochistan, in the country’s southwest, reported at least 15 deaths this month from torrential rains. 

In 2022, unprecedented rains swelled Pakistan’s rivers and at one point flooded a third of the country, killing 1,739 people. The floods also caused over $30 billion in damages, from which Pakistan is still trying to rebuild.

Pakistan has been prone to natural disasters and consistently ranks among the most severely affected countries in the world due to the effects of climate change.