Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan to retire on May 7

Was the only PHC who did not take oath under Nov 3, 2007 PCO

ISLAMABAD: Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan of the Supreme Court, who had announced the verdict regarding the disqualification of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, is going to retire on May 7.

Justice Khan was appointed as Peshawar High Court (PHC) judge in September 2000 during Pervez Musharraf’s era but he was the only judge of the PHC who did not take oath under the November 3, 2007 Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) nor Naek formula.

He was among the few judges who were restored along with former chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry on March 16, 2009 after a successful lawyers’ movement. He served as PHC judge for nine years and was appointed PHC chief justice in October 2009 and later elevated as Supreme Court judge on November 17, 2011.

Justice Khan will be remembered for his civility. For giving a proper opportunity of hearing in every case, the legal fraternity always pays him highest regard. Even senior lawyers are also unanimous that they may disagree with his verdicts, but his conduct with counsels as well as litigants in the courtroom sets an example for other judges.

He was among the few judges who wrote dissent note during the Iftikhar Chaudhry era.  He also dissented with majority opinion regarding the presidential reference related to the seniority of Islamabad High Court judges. He also opposed the majority opinion that Justice Muhammad Anwar Kasi is senior judge.



Justice Khan always preferred to adopt judicial restraint and not to interfere in the executive affairs and his six-page judgment on the plea of Pakistan Steel Peoples Workers Union is evident, wherein he had observed that judicial interference is not a substitute for prudent management.

However, he also received flaks due to his July 28, 2017 ruling, wherein he disqualified the ruling prime minister of the country on account of non-disclosure of his unwithdrawn salary.

Interestingly, he was highly regarded in the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) ranks till the April 20, 2017 verdict in the Panamagate case, wherein he did not endorse senior judge Asif Saeed Khosa’s  judgment regarding former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s disqualification.

However, after the issuance of the verdict and subsequent rejection of Sharif’s review petition, the judge also came under severe criticism of the PML-N followers.

Earlier, Justice Khan was a member of the judicial commission which had rejected Imran Khan’s allegations of rigging in the 2013 polls.

He was also among minority judges who struck down 21st constitutional amendment to try civilians in military courts on August 5, 2015. He was also among minority judges who directed the retired superior courts judges with less than five years of tenure to deposit their pension benefits (Rs1.64 billion).



In 2016, Justice Khan also authored ruling that the service rules of employees of strategic organisations are statutory and they can approach the court for arbitration. He also observed that unaccounted exercise of unfettered powers was dangerous and devastating for an institution like the National Command Authority.

A senior lawyer believes that Justice Khan was a courteous judge who listened attentively and appeared thoughtful. “In my limited experiences of appearing before him, I found him to be an independent yet conservative judge, although the 28th July judgment, in my humble opinion, falls short of the very cogent and persuasive reasoning for disqualification of Sharif,” said PBC member Raheel Kamran Sheikh.

However, renowned lawyer Faisal Siddiqui said Justice Khan would be remembered for his independence which was expressed by the fact that he was never afraid to dissent and always tried to balance law and justice, he added.

Currently, Justice Khan is presiding over a bench which is hearing PML-N leader Talal Chaudhry’s contempt case. The case is adjourned for hearing till Friday. The same bench is hearing the missing persons case which will be taken up on Wednesday.

The bench had asked the government to produce a complete record of all ‘missing’ persons detained in internment centres. The same bench is also hearing matters related to the property disputes of a business tycoon. It will be interesting whether the bench led by Justice Khan will conclude the proceedings in these cases or not.