Pakistani authorities on Saturday asked deposed Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry to vacate his official accommodation in Islamabad, but he refused to do so, saying he continued to hold the post.
Chaudhry, who was sacked after he refused to endorse the emergency imposed by president Pervez Musharraf in November 2007, was sent a notice by the Public Works Department asking him to vacate his residence in the Judges Colony within a week.
The notice said the residence was required as current Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar was facing problems in his present house.
In his response, Chaudhry said a judge was given a period of six months to vacate any official accommodation.
"Besides (this) provision, I am still the Chief Justice under the Constitution of Pakistan of 1973 read with the order of the full court dated November 3, 2007. Therefore, I am entitled to retain this home till my age of retirement," Chaudhry said.
Pakistan passing through darkest period: sacked CJ
Soon after Musharraf imposed emergency on November 3, 2007, a bench of seven judges headed by Chaudhry had suspended the measure and declared it 'null and void'. The judges were then removed from the apex court by army troops.
Chaudhry's response, which was released to the press by leading lawyer Athar Minallah, pointed out that he had been under house arrest since November 3.
"Therefore in these circumstances, I cannot be pressed to vacate this house within a week's period," Chaudhry said.
The deposed Chief Justice and his family have not been allowed to have visitors since he was placed under house arrest. His children have also been barred from attending their educational institutions.
Meanwhile, former Pakistan Supreme Court justice Rana Bhagwandas was on Saturday put under house arrest after he addressed a meeting of the local bar association urging lawyers to boycott judges who had endorsed the emergency.
Bhagwandas told reporters over the phone that he had been put under house arrest but said he did not know how long the detention would last.
The lone Hindu judge to reach the highest echelons of Pakistan's judiciary, Bhagwandas was previously also placed under house arrest shortly after Musharraf imposed emergency last year.
Bhagwandas urged members of the Karachi Bar Association to boycott judges who had taken oath under the Provisional Constitutional Order issued by Musharraf.
He also told them he was confident that the judges, who were dismissed by Musharraf, would soon be reinstated. Bhagwandas also administered the oath of office to the new office-bearers of the Karachi Bar Association.
Following his house detention, the bar association called for a strike by lawyers in the city courts on Monday. The bar association will also meet on Monday to decide on a strategy to oppose Bhagwandas' detention.