Judicial Commission approves committee to frame rules for appointing judges

ISLAMABAD: The Judicial Commission of Pakistan has approved the formation of a committee to frame rules and criteria for appointing judges, said a press release issued by the Supreme Court of Pakistan (SC) on Friday.

Last week, the Judicial Commission of Pakistan met under the chair of Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi to ponder over the nomination of Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan for becoming a part of the constitutional bench, formed under the 26th amendment, as its eighth judge.

In its first session, held on November 5, Justice Aminuddin Khan was appointed as the head of constitutional bench comprising of seven judges. He got majority vote (seven to five) while the CJP was among the dissenting members.

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CJP Afridi, SC Justices including Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, chief justices of the Peshawar and Sindh high courts, Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, and Senator Ali Zafar attended the meeting.

As per the press release, the SJC, besides forming the committee, also granted approval for the nomination of Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan for the constitutional bench.

“The Judicial Commission of Pakistan unanimously decided to accord highest priority towards framing of rules relating to regulating its procedure including the procedure and criteria for assessment, evaluation and fitness for appointment of judges,” the press release read.

The commission authorised the CJP Afridi for selecting its members for the new subcommittee. Supreme Court Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail will lead the five-member committee, comprising of Attorney General Mansoor Usman Awan, Senators Farooq Naek and Ali Zafar, and lawyer Akhtar Hussain.

The press release also stated that the new committee would also have the support of Judicial Commission Secretary Niaz Muhammad Khan, and two research officers of the apex court.

The CJP has directed the committee to furnish a draft of the rules by December 15.

The press release further said, “The Judicial Commission of Pakistan (Peshawar High Court) the agenda of appointment of Additional Judges for the Peshawar high court was deferred till 21st December, 2024.”

Moreover, the commission also extended the deadline for submitting nominations for the appointment of additional judges until December 10.

Likewise, the appointments for additional Sindh High Court judges was postponed till December 21 whereas the deadline to submit nominations was extended until December 10.