Undeterred by protests, JCP picks six new SC judges
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• Four high court CJs elevated to apex court; IHC’s Justice Aurangzeb becomes acting SC judge for tax matters
• PTI members, Justices Shah and Akhtar walk out after commission ignores their demands
• Lawyers stage demo in Red Zone against nominations; apex legal bodies ‘disown’ protests
ISLAMABAD: A protest by lawyers outside the Supreme Court and a boycott by four of its members failed to dissuade the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) on Monday from picking six new judges, as well as an acting judge for the apex court, under the 26th Amendment to the Constitution.
As the commission headed by Chief Justice Yahya Afridi huddled in the conference room of the top court to deliberate on the new appointments, the roads outside remained blocked due to a protest by lawyers, who held placards and raised slogans against the 26th Amendment.
Besides the protest, another thing that marred the session was the refusal of two Supreme Court judges — Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Munib Akhtar — as well as two PTI members — Barrister Ali Zafar and Barrister Gohar Ali Khan — to join the proceedings due to their reservations against the constitutional amendment.
Originally, the meeting was supposed to nominate eight new judges, but the JCP decided to defer the elevation of two judges from the Lahore High Court until later.
However, the commission, by a majority of its total membership, nominated Balochistan High Court Chief Justice Muhammad Hashim Khan Kakar, Sindh High Court (SHC) Chief Justice Muhammad Shafi Siddiqui and his colleague Justice Salahuddin Panhwar, Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice Aamer Farooq, Peshawar High Court (PHC) Chief Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim, and his colleague Justice Shakeel Ahmad.
The JCP also nominated IHC Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb as an acting judge of the Supreme Court under Article 181 of the Constitution. Seven members voted in favour of appointing Justice Farooq as a Supreme Court judge, while Justice Mandokhail and JCP member Akhtar Hussain dissented.
At the outset of the proceedings, Justice Shah and Justice Akhtar referred to a letter written by four judges of the Supreme Court, requesting the CJP to postpone the meeting till a decision on the 26th Amendment and the seniority of the IHC judges. But the JCP, by a majority vote, proceeded with the meeting, prompting the two judges to walk out.
PTI representatives Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and Barrister Ali Zafar also asked the commission to put the meeting on hold until the matter of the IHC judges’ seniority was finally determined, adding that if the commission chose to proceed, then it should not at least consider any of the judges recently transferred to the IHC as eligible for appointments.
However, JCP members asked the PTI leaders to raise their point when the matter of the IHC judges’ elevation came before the commission.
Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail also asked to stay, but to no avail.
After the meeting, Barrister Zafar told Dawn that the party had given them clear instructions not to participate in the meeting if the JCP did not heed their request. Barrister Gohar Ali Khan told reporters that the PTI representatives supported the point of view of the two judges but chose not to participate any further when their stance was not taken up.
During the meeting, CJP Afridi suggested the elevation of Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb under Article 181 of the Constitution to clear tax and commercial matters pending in the top court.
Article 181 allows the president to appoint a high court judge qualified for appointment as a judge of the Supreme Court to act temporarily as judge of the apex court.
Justice Aurangzeb will remain a judge of the Supreme Court until the pleasure of the president, after which Justice Aurangzeb may revert back to the IHC or stand confirmed as a judge of the Supreme Court depending on the situation.
The decision was made against the backdrop of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif as well as the Federal Board of Revenue’s request for expeditious disposal of pending tax/revenue matters, since the stuck-up cases were causing huge revenue losses to the national exchequer.
Lawyers protest
Meanwhile, the All-Pakistan Lawyers Action Committee held a protest, with a request to the CJP and the JCP members to protect, preserve and uphold judicial independence.
Due to the lawyers’ protest, all entry routes to the Red Zone were closed off. Dozens of lawyers gathered at Serena Chowk as the route to Nadra Chowk was blocked.
The protest urged the commission to stand firm against any pressures, political manoeuvring or unconstitutional actions that sought to erode the integrity of the courts, saying it was now time for the entire judiciary to unite and reclaim its rightful place as the guardian of justice, constitutional supremacy, and the fundamental rights of the people.
On the other hand, the Pakistan Bar Council, the Supreme Court Bar Association of Pakistan, the Punjab Bar Council, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Bar Council, the Balochistan High Court Bar Association and the Sindh High Court Bar Association distanced themselves from the strike call.
They regretted that certain political factions within the legal community were attempting to create chaos and division to achieve their ulterior political motives and realise their questionable political agendas.
Meanwhile, the seven-judge Constitutional Bench did not hold its hearing in the military court case as senior counsel Salman Akram Raja could not reach the Supreme Court.
The hearing will be taken up on Tuesday.
Published in Dawn, February 11th, 2025
