Five IHC judges move Supreme Court against seniority list

ISLAMABAD: Five judges of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) have moved Supreme Court of Pakistan, challenging the seniority list, ARY News reported.

As per details, the 49-page petition, filed under Article 184(3), stated that the President’s powers to transfer judges are not absolute and should be conditional upon the Judicial Commission’s approval.

The petition, filed through lawyers Munir A. Malik and Barrister Salahuddin, named the federal government, transferred judges, and high courts as respondents. It also seeks a stay order against the transferred judges, including Justice Sardar Mohammad Sarfraz Dogar, who recently took oath as the acting chief justice of the IHC.

The petitioners, including Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Justice Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri, Justice Babar Sattar, Justice Rafaqat Imtiaz, and Justice Saman Rafat, have raised 13 pleas before the court. They contended that judges cannot be transferred from one high court to another without public interest.

This move comes after IHC judges wrote a letter to President Asif Ali Zardari and Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Yahya Afridi, expressing concerns over the appointment of the chief justice of the IHC. They had requested that the chief justice be appointed from among the three senior judges of the court itself.

Read More: 12 additional judges appointed to SHC

The development came after Judges of the Islamabad High Court have written a letter to President Asif Ali Zardari and Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Yahya Afridi, outlining their concerns regarding the appointment of the chief justice of the court.

The IHC judges had requested that the chief justice of the Islamabad High Court should be appointed from among the three senior judges of the court itself, rather than bringing in a judge from another high court.

They also emphasised the need for providing reasons for bringing in a judge from another high court, the sources said.

They added that the letter, which was also copied to the Chief Justices of the Sindh High Court and the Lahore High Court, has been signed by several judges, including Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani.

It is pertinent to mention here that the Ministry of Law and Justice appointed two additional judges to the Islamabad High Court (IHC) after the approval of President Asif Ali Zardari.