JCP unanimously recommends Justice Irfan's elevation to SC

The Judicial Commission of Pakistan unaminously recommended Justice Irfan Saadat Khan on Friday for his elevation to the Supreme Court.

A meeting of the commission was held on the call of Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa who proposed his name to fill one of the two seats currently vacant in the apex court.

A statement issued by the JCP secretary prior to the meeting noted that Justice Khan, who is the acting Sindh High Court chief justice, met the stipulated requirements for his appointment as a judge of the SC.

“In view of the current pendency of cases together with [the] rising institution of new cases, the vacancy in the Supreme Court should be filled,” it added.

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“[Justice Khan] is knowledgeable, well experienced, versatile with an upright character and in my opinion deserving of being appointed as [a] judge of the Supreme Court. He is also the most senior judge amongst the chief justices and judges of all the high courts,” it continued.

The JCP secretary also wrote that CJP Isa wanted that suggestions for determining the criteria for the appointment of high court judges should also be discussed in the meeting.

The official asked the members of the body to attend the meeting on October 20.

Justice Khan had been ignored for his elevation to the SC for the past six years.

Meanwhile, Justice Aqeel Abbasi's name was proposed for the SHC chief justice's office.

Justice Abbasi’s elevation had also been ignored for six years.

In 2021, the Pakistan Bar Council, Supreme Court Bar Association and other lawyers’ bodies of the country had expressed their reservations over the elevation of SHC’s Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar to the SC as he was fifth on the seniority list with the then high court’s CJ Ahmed Ali M Shaikh, then senior puisne judge Justice Irfan Saadat Khan, Justice Aqeel Abbasi and Justice Syed Hassan Azhar Rizvi ranking above him.