CJ trial will be fair: Bhagwan Das

“We will take decision in favour of the country and I believe Allah will help us in this regard,” he told the BBC.

Justice Das also said he does not expect President Pervez Musharraf will pressurise the five-judge Supreme Judicial Council to deliver a favourable verdict. The court will not accept any pressure from political parties and lawyers, he said.

The trial by the SJC will resume on April 3.

On the objections raised by hardline politicians, including Jamaat-i-Islami leader Qazi Hussain Ahmed and some Islamic groups to his appointment to the post, Justice Das said the Constitution does not bar a non-Muslim from heading the Supreme Court. In the past, he said, Justice Cornelius, a Christian, headed the apex court between 1960 and 1968.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said the reference against Justice Chaudhry was filed before the SJC after meeting all Constitutional requirements.

Speaking to a delegation from the Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry yesterday, he said the government will stand by the verdict of the SJC.

On Monday, Kachkol Ali Baloch, the leader of Opposition in Balochistan, met Chaudhry in Islamabad and the suspended judge told him that he had full confidence in Justice Das and is hopeful of getting justice.