JCP to pick next LHC CJ on 23rd

Incumbent chief justice of provincial high court set to retire on March 7

ISLAMABAD:

The Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) is scheduled to meet on Friday, February 23, to discuss the elevation of Lahore High Court (LHC) senior judge Malik Shahzad Ahmad Khan to the position of the provincial high court’s chief justice.

The LHC’s incumbent chief justice, Justice Muhammad Ameer Bhatti, is set to retire next month, on March 7. Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJ) Qazi Faez Isa, who is also the JCP chairman, will chair the upcoming meeting of the commission.
On December 4, the CJ formed a committee to review the JCP Rules 2010 and define the protocols for appointing judges to the superior judiciary.

The Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) has persistently advocated for alterations in the JCP rules, proposing that the sole authority to select judges should not rest with the chief justice of Pakistan.

However, at the December 4 meeting, two JCP members, Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Munib Akhtar, had expressed objections to the committee's formation at this juncture, especially in the absence of an elected government.

PBC member Advocate Akhtar Hussain had highlighted that judge appointments, being a policy matter, have nevertheless been executed. Stressing the urgency of filling vacant positions in high courts, Hussain had urged the expeditious framing of judge nomination regulations.

On December 17, The Express Tribune had reported that the committee, formed by CJ Isa, is contemplating the establishment of a committee to nominate candidates for appointment as judges in the superior courts.

Sources had suggested that the committee aimed to regulate the discretionary powers of chief justices concerning the appointment of judges to the superior judiciary.

A member of the rules committee informed The Express Tribune that there was also a proposal for a medical board to assess the health and mental condition of judge nominees.

To ensure timely appointments to vacant positions in high courts and the apex court, deadlines will be specified in the JCP rules.

Candidates will engage in informal interactions with JCP members. Several proposals are under consideration to enhance the criteria for judges' appointments, he had said.