JCP puts off mulling IHC judges appointment

IHC CJ recommended names of Kashif Sarwar Paracha, Faiz Jandran, Azam Kamrani for appointment

ISLAMABAD: The Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) deferred on Thursday the matter of the appointment of three Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges.

Sources told The Express Tribune that the JCP has postponed the matter for a short time.

However, it is still unclear whether the JCP will consider the names recommended by IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah or new suggestions will be floated.

The sources said reservations were expressed over one nominee.

The IHC chief justice has recommended the names of Karachi-based lawyer Kashif Sarwar Paracha, Islamabad Bar Council member Faiz Jandran and Balochistan-based lawyer Azam Kamrani for their appointment to the court.

The commission has approved two names for the Balochistan High Court (BHC) despite the reservations of the bar association.

BHC Chief Justice Tahira Safdar had proposed the names of advocate Abdul Hameed Baloch and additional sessions judge Rozi Khan Barrech.

The sources said a member of the Balochistan Bar Council had expressed his reservations over Baloch-origin lawyers not being given preference for the posts.

He said out of nine judges currently working in the BHC, only three were of Baloch origin.

One member of the commission objected over the tax records of both nominees. He pointed out that the nominees had not provided their tax records for the last five years. However, the commission overruled the objection and approved their appointment.