Soon after two Supreme Court judges cast aspersions over Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial’s power, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senior Vice President Maryam Nawaz said Monday their verdict backed her party’s narrative on “bench-fixing”.

“If the constitution of the [Supreme Court] bench is not fair; then how will the decision be considered fair?” she said while presiding over a meeting of PML-N spokespersons.

In an unusual development in the top court, two judges from the five-member larger bench — hearing the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s petition over the postponement of elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa — raised questions over the powers of the chief justice of Pakistan (CJP), saying the apex court “cannot be reliant on the solitary decision of one man, the Chief Justice”.