Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry presiding over the meeting of Judicial Commission. PHOTO: APP
The Judicial Commission on the Appointment of Judges, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, nominated seven new additional judges for the Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Saturday.
The recommendations were made in the absence of top government officials at the meeting – despite President Asif Ali Zardari recently appearing to have accepted his ceremonial role in the appointment of judges in the superior judiciary.
Law Minister Farooq H Naek, Attorney General Irfan Qadir and a representative of the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) did not attend the meeting.
The names of Afsar Ali Shah, Laal Jan Khatak, Ikram ullah Khan, Abdul Latif Khan, Musarat Hilali, Saud Khan and Malik Manzoor Hassan were nominated for the posts.
Likewise, the commission has recommended a six- month extension in the terms of six judges of the Lahore High Court, including Justice Abdus Sami Khan, Justice Ayesha A Malik, Justice Shahid Waheed, Justice Baqir Ali Najfi, Justice Shujaat Ali and Justice Ibadur Rehman Lodhi.
The commission is authorised to give recommendations as there is no quorum mentioned in the Constitution, but the move will likely increase moral pressure over the appointment process, a representative of the PBC told The Express Tribune.
A top judicial officer also said that government officials’ boycott of the Judicial Commission proceedings had no legal justification, as they could voice their concerns in the meeting. “When there is a legal remedy available then their boycott has no constitutional or moral standing,” he said.
The absence of Naek, Qadir and a PBC representative from the meeting is an indication that the deadlock between the superior bars and the judicial commission still persists.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 3rd, 2013.
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