Judges appointment to take limelight

Appointment of superior court judges next month is expected to be another ‘litmus test’ of govt-judiciary...

ISLAMABAD: The appointment of superior court judges next month is expected to be another ‘litmus test’ of the government-judiciary relations as all eyes are on the verdict of the 18th amendment case which will determine a mechanism for such elevations and inductions.

Justice Rehmat Hussain Jaffery will be retiring in November, while some other judges of the superior courts will also reach superannuation in the near future, creating openings for new appointments.

Keeping in view the current executive-judiciary row and some past incidents of acrimony between the two institutions during elevation of LHC justices Asif Saeed Khosa and Saqib Nisar as Supreme Court judges, the new appointments would assume much importance, top lawyers said.

For fresh appointment in the Supreme Court, one such move under the judges’ appointment mechanism is to be forwarded by the chief justice of Pakistan to the president next month.

“The Supreme Court is preparing a formal proposal for fresh appointment as Justice Rehmat Hussain Jaffery will be retiring after four weeks,” Registrar Supreme Court Dr Faqir Hussain said. “Before his (Justice Jaffery) retirement the proposal will be sent to the president,” he said. “The same practice will be exercised when Justice Ghulam Rabbani will be completing his tenure as an ad-hoc judge.”

As Justice Rehmat Jaffery is retiring on November 21, Lahore High Court Chief Justice Khwaja Sharif will be retiring soon after. Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry will have to send his recommendations under Article 177 of the Constitution for fresh appointment of a judge in the apex court.

Supreme Court Bar Association’s former president Hamid Khan said that the 18th Amendment case’s judgment would be crucial and have a direct bearing on the mechanism of judges’ appointment.

“If the amended clause of Article 175-A is struck down by the court then there would be an interesting situation to appoint fresh judges through the already set mechanism,” Khan said. “All superior judges will have to be appointed soon after the judgment,” Khan added. He clarified that he was not commenting on the expected judgment.

Former deputy attorney general Shah Khawar observed that the appointment of top judges next month is expected to emerge as a key debating point in light of the tense government-judiciary relationship.

If the chief justice recommends the name of LHC Chief Justice Khwaja Sharif as a Supreme Court judge then it is commonly said that the president would send his name for reconsideration to the prime minister in light of the Constitution as he (Justice Sharif) is reportedly used to giving political statements, he added.

Under Article 179 Justice Jaffery will retired on November 22, 2010 when he will attain the age of 65 years. Chief Justice LHC Khwaja Sharif will retire under Article 195 of the Constitution on December 8, 2010 as he will attain the age of 62 years. Then president of Pakistan under Article 193 of the Constitution will have to appoint a new LHC chief justice in consultation with the provincial governor and chief justice of Pakistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 20^th, 2010.