Islamabad High Court. PHOTO COURTESY: IHC WEBSITE
Sources privy to the development have disclosed to The Express Tribune that Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Asif Saeed Khosa has summoned a meeting of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) on May 2 to consider names of three nominees for appointment as IHC judges.
Justice Minallah on April 17 recommended the names of Karachi-based lawyer Kashif Sarwar Paracha, Islamabad Bar Council member Faiz Jandran and Balochistan-based lawyer Muhammad Evaz Zehri as judges of the high court.
Senior lawyers have apparently expressed their satisfaction over these nominees.
However, the IHC chief justice on April 19 wrote a letter to the JCP secretary stating that Evaz Zehri has expressed regret to become IHC judge due to personal reasons.
IHC judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui sacked
"He [Zehri] was indeed eligible and would have aptly represented the province of Balochistan but since he has regretted to be considered, his nomination is hereby withdrawn," says the letter written by the IHC chief justice to JCP secretary Arbab Muhammad Arif.
The letter states that in view of Zehri’s withdrawal his name may not be placed for consideration.
However, sources close to Zehri claim that he was compelled to show regret to become IHC judge due to unknown reasons.
One section claims that he could not qualify for the test of additional and session judge in the past, therefore, he was not eligible for the post.
On the other hand, Zehri supporters claim that security establishment had negative views about him. Even he [Zehri] could not get security clearance as his job as National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor in Balochistan could not be extended in the recent past.
Currently, no Balochistan judge is working in the IHC. Only Justice Qazi Faez Isa is working in the apex court for the past five years.
Balochistan Bar Council executive member Munir Kakar has expressed serious concerns over the withdrawal of Zehri’s nomination. He appealed to CJP Khosa to look into the matter as why Baloch nation is being deprived of getting such posts.
SC admits sacked judge’s petition against his removal
"We have high expectations that CJP Khosa will give fair rights to the Baloch nation in the judiciary,” he said.
Kakar also said that Balochistan lawyers’ association has summoned Zehri to find out the reasons behind withdrawing his name.
At the moment there are just four judges in the IHC, including Justice Minallah, who had been elevated to the IHC in June 2014.
There is Justice Aamer Farooq of Lahore who was elevated to the high court as an additional judge on January 1, 2015.
Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, a bonafide Islooite, had been elevated to the high court on December 23, 2015.
Lastly, Jusice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb hails from the Swat valley in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. He was elevated to the IHC on December 23, 2015.
According to the IHC Act 2010, the capital’s high court consists of a chief justice and six other judges who are appointed from the provinces and other territories of Pakistan in accordance with the Constitution.
However, after the sacking of Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui and the retirement of former IHC chief justice Anwar Khan Kasi in quick succession last year meant that the IHC bench was left understaffed.
Currently, more than 15,000 cases are pending in the IHC — a humongous task for just four judges to clear on their own or even seven.
In this regard, the federal government has approved a bill to increase numbers of judges in the IHC from seven to 10.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ