Three crucial JCP meetings on Dec 2

Commission to appoint chief justices of BHC, SHC

ISLAMABAD:

Three important meetings of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) — regarding the appointment of a Supreme Court judge and the appointment of chief justices for two high courts —have been scheduled for December 2.

These meetings—chaired by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi—will be the first formal meetings of the JCP concerning appointments to the superior judiciary after the 27th Constitutional Amendment.

According to the agenda for the first meeting, the commission will consider the appointment of the chief justice of the Sindh High Court, for which the names of the court's three most senior judges will be taken up.

The second meeting will address the appointment of a permanent chief justice of the Balochistan High Court (BHC), where again the names of the top three senior BHC judges will be reviewed.

In the third meeting, the commission will discuss the appointment of one judge from the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to the Supreme Court.

As per the agenda, the names under consideration will be the IHC's three most senior judges: Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar, Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb.

On November 18, three important judicial forums—the JCP, the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) and the Practice and Procedure Act (PAPA) committee of the Supreme Court—were reconstituted in view of the 27th Constitutional Amendment.

According to a notification issued by the Supreme Court, two judges of the newly formed Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) — Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi — were nominated as members of the JCP and the SJC.

The JCP is the constitutional body that elevates judges to the superior courts

The SJC is the forum that hears complaints filed against judges of superior courts in view of alleged misconduct while the PAPA committee of the Supreme Court forms benches and lists cases.

Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail was also appointed as a member of the SJC, but he has not been included in the JCP. Justice Mandokhail was a member of the JCP formed under the 26th Constitutional Amendment.

The notification stated that in line with the principles of transparency and institutional continuity, Justice Mandokhail, who is a senior judge of the Supreme Court, has been nominated for two years as a member of the JCP under Article 209(2)(d). The nomination was made jointly by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi and FCC Chief Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan.

The SJC is headed by Chief Justice Yahya Afridi, while other members include Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi, and the two most senior chief justices of the high courts.

According to the SC notification, Justice Aamer Farooq — a judge of the FCC — was nominated as a member of the JCP for two years, through a joint decision of CJP Afridi and CJ Khan.

Under the amended Article 175A(2), sub-clause (3A), one judge—either from the FCC or the Supreme Court—is to be jointly nominated by the CJ of the FCC and the chief justice of Pakistan for a term of two years.

The PML-N led government brought major changes in the country's judicial system first through the 26th Constitutional Amendment bulldozed through parliament in October 2024 and later by the 27th Constitutional Amendment passed amid protest of opposition on November 12, 2025.