ISLAMABAD: Described as a very humble person who always kept his cool at the bench, Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan of the Supreme Court is reaching superannuation on May 7. He will be bade farewell the same day in a full court reference.

With the retirement of Justice Afzal, the number of sitting judges in the top court will come down to 15 out of the sanctioned strength of 17.

Justice Afzal heard a number of important cases, including the Panama Papers, missing persons and Orange Line Metro Train, as well as contempt of court cases against PML-N loyalist Nehal Hashmi and Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry.

“A man of that rare characteristic judicial temperament,” was a one-liner response by former additional attorney general Tariq Khokhar when asked to define the characteristic of Justice Afzal.

Advocate Asad Rahim Khan was of the view that Justice Afzal demonstrated through actions, not words, the burdens of judicial office: he refused to be restored a moment earlier than former chief justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry in 2009 when the latter was reinstated after being deposed by former president Pervez Musharraf in 2007.

Justice Afzal provided each and every petitioner a patient hearing no matter what the circumstances and his decisions were both thoughtful and compassionate, the counsel said.

Azam Nazeer Tarar, former vice chairman of the Pakistan Bar Council, said Justice Afzal was a pro-litigant judge who was always in search of finding ways and reasons to give relief to the litigants.

PBC’s senior member Raheel Kamran Sheikh praised the stand Justice Afzal had taken while deciding the controversy of seniority between two judges of the Islamabad High Court — Justice Riaz Ahmad Khan and Justice Muhammad Anwar Khan Kasi — on a reference sent by the then president Asif Ali Zardari to the Supreme Court in 2013.

In his note, Justice Afzal had observed that though the president had no power to return a nomination to any of the tiers it had passed from, even if it was violative of the Constitution, the president would not appoint any person as judge of the Supreme Court or chief justice of a high court, whose nomination, in his opinion was against the Constitution.

Published in Dawn, May 1st, 2018