Lawyer Mahfooz Saeed has said that the Supreme Court does not have the authority to penalize judges.

Speaking on RaajjeTV’s Fala Surukhee show on Tuesday night, Mahfooz said that the Supreme Court might be the top most judicial authority, but that does not mean it has authority over everything that happens in the country.

Highlighting the various issues in the judiciary, Mahfooz said that he questions the legitimacy of some of the verdicts issued by the Criminal Court, adding that some are informed of the exact procedure and the sentence to be given beforehand.

Mahfooz also confirmed the claims made by Husnu Suood, the head of the presidential commission on deaths and disappearances, who said that gangs have tremendous influence over judges and the courts and that they use it to halt death cases, tamper with evidence, intimidate witnesses, release terrorist suspects, reduce sentences, and jail innocent people.

Mahfooz said that many people who work in the legal sector have seen it firsthand and that if a proper investigation is held, there would be many people who would be willing to file complaints against judges.