Court moved against PBC for nominating elected member

Petitioner says the council can nominate a senior lawyer.


Express November 03, 2010

LAHORE: The Supreme Court was moved on Tuesday against the Pakistan Bar Council for nominating its elected member to the Judicial Commission for the appointment of Supreme Court judges.

The court was also requested to review the appointment of Justice (r) Ali Hussain Qizalbash as a member of the Judicial Commission.

Watan Party president, Barrister Zafar Ullah Khan, challenging the appointment of Dr Khalid Ranjha, submitted that under the Article 175-A of the Constitution the PBC was authorised to nominate a senior advocate. He said that the nominee, however, should not be an elected member of the PBC. He said that the PBC “should act like an arbitrator and not decide in its own favour”.

He said that if the council would nominate one of its elected members the purpose of the exercise would be lost.

Without naming Dr Khalid Ranjha, the petitioner said that the PBC’s nomination of its elected member was against the spirit of Article 175-A of the Constitution. He said that it was unconstitutional and illegal, adding that the nominations to the Judicial Commission should be made in a transparent manner so that there was no room for an objection.

The petitioner submitted that the appointment of the judges of the apex court was a matter of public interest and should be done in accordance with the constitution.

Khan said that he realised that the PBC was under immense pressure but it should not let politics affect judicial appointments and jeopardise the independence of judiciary.

He said that under the Article 175-A, provincial bar councils were also authorised to nominate a senior advocate to the commission for the appointment of High Court judges. These, too, should not be elected members of the bar councils, he added.

The petitioner further said that Justice (retired) Ali Hussain Qizalbash’s nomination to the commission should be reviewed. Justice Qizalbash, he said, was about 85 years old and had been retired for more than 20 years. He said that Justice Qizalbash would not have sufficient knowledge about the candidates aspiring to be judges of the apex court and would not be able to make appropriate recommendations.

Khan said that it was hard to believe that an 85-year-old former judge would be able to contribute to the appointment process, adding, “He may be a good voter but he cannot be a good selector”.

He submitted that only recently retired judges should be included in the commission and requested the court to review the appointment of Justice (r) Qizalbash.

He also prayed the court to direct the PBC and provincial bar councils to refrain from appointing their elected members to the commission.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 3rd, 2010.

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