Costly contracts: SAC judges in G-B retire in three years and receive full pension

Receive Rs8-10million upfront, Rs300,000 pension monthly.

GILGIT:

The procedure of appointing judges to Gilgit-Baltistan’s apex court - the Supreme Appellate Court (SAC) - is not only against the established norms of an independent judiciary but also a burden on the meagre resources of the region.

According to Gilgit-Baltistan’s Empowerment and Self Governance Order 2009, the SAC has three judges including the chief judge, whose status is equivalent to the chief justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. But unlike the Supreme Court, the three judges of the SAC, including the chief judge, are appointed on a contractual basis for a period of three years, while their pay, pension, other perks and privileges are similar to those of the permanent judges of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and that of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

After the completion of the contract, each SAC judge is entitled to collect Rs8-10million, get a monthly pension of Rs300,000 and other privileges, just as the permanent judges of the Supreme Court.

Contracts of the three current SAC judges will expire next year. Under Giglit-Baltistan’s 2009 order, the government will have to hire three fresh judges, an exercise that is repeated every three years putting an unbearable strain on the budget of this cash-starved region.

A judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan normally retires after a service of 25 years whereas more than eight judges will serve in the SAC in as much time.

“If the sitting judges are awarded permanent status, the government may save a huge amount from reinvesting in new judges every three years,” a senior lawyer said.

Last year, Haji Jan Baz, a Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz member of the legislative assembly tabled a resolution in this regard which is still pending.

Gilgit-Baltistan law minister Wazir Shakil said that the Gilgit-Baltistan legislative assembly does not have the authority to make amendments in the Gilgit-Baltistan self governance order 2009.



Published in The Express Tribune, June 19th, 2011.