ISLAMABAD, Nov 2: Chief Justice Islamabad High Court (IHC) Iqbal Hameedur Rehman on Friday made ineffective the orders passed by Justice Mohammad Azim Khan Afridi regarding alleged illegal appointments made in the judiciary by removing him from the position of the in-charge judge.

On the directives of the chief justice, Acting Registrar Syed Muzaffar Ali Shah on Friday issued two circulars after the judge declared illegal a number of appointments made in the IHC and the lower judiciary since January 2011.

Justice Afridi on Thursday had also taken the recruitment record into his custody.

According to a senior IHC official, the chief justice warned the judge of legal action in case he does not return the record. In a letter delivered to the judge at his residence, the chief justice asked him to return the record voluntarily or be ready to face coercive measures, the official added.

The IHC administration through the circulars dated November 1 withdrawn the administrative powers from Justice Afridi and declared that the orders passed by the judge in which he had asked the alleged illegal appointees to relinquish the charge, “has no legal effect”.

The clarification from the IHC administration ended the confusion among the over 150 judicial staff of the IHC and the lower judiciary.

According to advocate Mohammad Waqas, the judicial officers of sessions court were more concerned about the orders of Justice Afridi. “They stopped working in their respective courts early Friday morning and held a meeting to discuss the order and their future course.” In the meanwhile, the IHC administration informed them that Justice Afridi was no more “in-charge judge” and, therefore, his order entailed no legal significance. After this, the judicial officers resumed work.—Malik Asad