CJP Nisar recommends elevation of Justice Akhtar to SC

Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar has recommended the name of Sindh High Court (SHC) judge Justice Munib Akhtar to be elevated as a judge of the Supreme Court (SC).

According to reports circulating in the local media, The CJP called a meeting of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) on April 5 to discuss the issue of elevating Justice Akhtar to the SC bench.

A seat had been left vacant in the top court after Justice Dost Muhammad Khan retired earlier this week. The elevation of Justice Akhtar would allow him to become the chief justice after the retirement of Justice Mansoor Ali Shah in 2027.

It is important to mention here that Justice Akhtar is the fourth judge on the seniority list of SHC judges. Though judges have mostly been elevated on the basis of their seniority, some exceptions to this rule include an example where former CJP Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry elevated the current CJP Nisar and Justice Asif Saeed Khosa by ignoring Lahore High Court (LHC) Chief Justice Khawaja Muhammad Sharif.

The news of Justice Akhtar’s elevation received support from some lawyers and was opposed by others. A senior lawyer said that Akhtar’s elevation to the apex court would improve the court’s working as he was a “superb jurist”.

On the other hand, a section of lawyers belonging to Sindh raised objections on the issue, saying that Justice Akhtar’s elevation was dubious since three senior SHC judges were not considered for the vacant seat, while chief justices of other high courts were also ignored in the process.

It is also important to mention here that no judge had been elevated to the apex court from Balochistan since 2014. The last SC judge from the province was Justice Qazi Faez Isa. Presently, two SC judges, namely Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan and Justice Alam Khan Miankhel, were from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), where the latter would retire in May. Meanwhile, around eight judges, including the CJP, were from Punjab and five from Sindh.

Since the establishment of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in 2010, only one judge, Justice Hameedur Rehman, was elevated to the apex court. He subsequently resigned from his post.

According to a section of lawyers, the criterion to elevate judges should be based on competency and reputation, while seniority should be given the most preference. In the past, many resolutions have been passed to amend the JCP rules in a bid to slash the CJP’s powers to make unchallenged appointments of judges.

It also merits mention here that Justice Akhtar is the son-in-law of Law Minister Khalid Anwar.