When will CJP summon JCP huddle for five SC judges?

ISLAMABAD:

All eyes are on Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial to initiate his move for the appointment of five Supreme Court judges, who he had nominated.

Currently 12 judges are working in the Supreme Court while total strength is 17. The total pendency is above 50,000 cases in the apex court.

No judge has been appointed to the SC since February.

However, the total pendency has been reduced during the six-month tenure of the incumbent CJP. All that credit goes to CJP Bandial for maintaining discipline in composition of benches and fixation of cases, but he is unable to appoint new judges and there are several reasons for that.

First, the regime change has severely affected the CJP's position in Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP).

Earlier during the PTI-led government, two JCP members – the law minister and attorney general for Pakistan (AGP) – were always inclined to support the CJP's junior high court nominees for their elevation to the top court.

This also happened in the appointment of Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Justice Ayesha Malik.

However, the situation dramatically changed as two representatives of the incumbent government -- the law minister and AGP -- are supporting the bar's view on judges’ appointment.

There could be many reasons for it. The incumbent law minister, Azam Nazeer Tarar, is an active member of bar politics.

Similarly, the superior bars have an important role in bringing the incumbent regime into power.

It has also been witnessed that the judicial proceedings in a few cases including the suo motu notice on alleged interference in the affairs of investigation and prosecution departments in high-profile cases as well as the SC's refusal to form a full court to decide the then Punjab Assembly deputy speaker’s ruling have irked the incumbent federal government led by the PML-N.

Senior lawyers said that if the SC had not rejected the plea for the composition of a full court, then situation might have been different during the JCP meeting held on July 28.

After analysing the outcome of the JCP meetings, it is clear that there are two views within the commission.

One view is represented by CJP Bandial and Justice Ijazul Ahsan that is not in favour of adhering to the seniority principle for the SC judges' appointment. They believe that appointments should be based on competence, efficiency, integrity and temperament.

The other view is reflected in Justice Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Sardar Tariq Masood's opinions on the matter.

They are contending that the seniority principle should be followed for the appointment of top court judges until objective criteria was evolved. The Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) representative in the JCP is also supporting this view.

After the retirement of Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah has become the new JCP member.

Everyone is wondering when would CJP Bandial summon the meeting of the JCP to consider his five nominations for their appointment to the SC.

Senior Puisne Judge Justice Isa will also resume his judicial work after two months of break as he was abroad.

Currently, three future CJPs are part of the commission.

Renowned lawyer Faisal Siddiqui in his article wrote that the future of the judiciary was in the hands of incumbent CJP Bandial and future top judge Justice Isa. “I cannot think of two better CJPs to lead this institution if only their judicial legacy and not their immediate power positions is the focus of their attention,” he added.

PBC representative Akhtar Hussain in his letter to the CJP wrote that the JCP members must not divide themselves in camps, nor treat the commission’s decisions as an internal election.

“We must neither seek to rush through our favoured candidates when we feel we are in the majority nor seek to unnecessarily postpone when we feel we are in minority,” he added.

He noted that the fierce and evident divisions that have cropped up within the judicial institution were not in the national interest.

“The blame can be rested at many doors. But as head of the legal fraternity of Pakistan – the solution lies, first and foremost, at your [CJP] door,” he further wrote.

There are reports that the CJP may summon a JCP meeting to consider the confirmation of 13 Lahore High Court judges before considering the nominations of SC judges.

There is also a crisis within the Sindh High Court for the last five years. There is frustration among senior high court judges, who are being ignored without any valid reason being mentioned.

The SC proceedings in Justice Isa’s case have already damaged the institution. Likewise, the release of the audio recording of the last JCP meeting has also severely affected the judiciary’s reputation.

Instead of delaying the matter, CJP Bandial should initiate a dialogue with JCP members and discuss a middle way.

Even JCP member Justice (retd) Sarmad Jalal Osmani also wondered why Justice Aqeel Abbasi was not considered for appointment as an SC judge.

Similarly, there is also strong support for the elevation of Islamabad High Court Chief Justice Athar Minallah to the SC. However, the ball is in the court of the CJP as he is the authorised person to propose nominees. He will either wait for an appropriate time or evolve a consensus within the JCP about the appointment of the five new judges.