Term extensions: SC suspends parliamentary body’s decision

Apex court tells the judges to continue functioning until court decides on the issue.

ISLAMABAD:

The Supreme Court suspended on Thursday the decision of the parliamentary committee on appointment of judges to refuse one-year extensions to four Lahore High Court (LHC) judges.

The judicial commission had recommended an extension in the terms of four additional judges Justice Muhammad Yawar Ali, Justice Syed Mazahir Ali Akbar Naqvi, Justice Mamoon Rashid Sheikh and Justice Muhammad Farrukh Irfan Khan.

A division bench of the apex court, comprising Justice Mahmood Akhtar Shahid Sidiqui and Justice Jawad S Khawaja, directed the judges to continue serving until the court announces its verdict. While referring the issue to Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, the bench recommended that a larger bench be constituted to hear the petitions of advocates Kamran Murtaza and Munir Hussain Bhatti.

Former attorney-general Makhdoom Ali Khan, who is the counsel for the petitioners, argued before the bench that the parliamentary committee could only monitor the judicial commission’s functioning and could not reject the commission’s recommendations.

Under Article 175-A of the Constitution, the judicial commission is responsible for appointing judges and the parliamentary committee is unaware of the personality, career and conduct  of the judges in courts.

Attorney-General Maulvi Anwarul Haq said that the reasons for rejecting the commission’s recommendations would be presented before the court by Friday, adding that the rationale would also be explained to the judicial commission.

The judicial commission, headed by the chief justice, had recommended in January this year that 24 LHC judges be granted a one-year term extension. As many as 34 additional judges of the LHC were to get the extension on the basis of their performance but the commission itself dropped the names of 10 judges. The parliamentary committee on the appointment of judges accepted the commission’s proposal to extend the tenures of 20 judges.

Bhatti and Murtaza filed a petition in the Supreme Court on Tuesday under Article 184 (3) of the Constitution, challenging the parliamentary committee’s rejection to extend the tenure of four judges. The chief justice issued a notice seeking a response from the AGP and constituted a two-member bench to hear the case on Thursday.

Petitioners requested the court to quash the parliamentary committee’s recommendations in respect of the four LHC judges and direct the respondent to implement the judicial commission’s recommendations and issue a notification accordingly.

The petitioners also urged the court to suspend the parliamentary committee’s recommendations and restrain the respondent from issuing any notification in pursuance of these recommendations. The respondent, they said, should also be restrained from interfering with the performance or functioning of the four judges. The parliamentary commission, they pleaded, extend their tenure as directed by the judicial commission and allow them to continue to perform their duties until the court issues further notice or disposes of this petition.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 18th, 2011.