JCP okays appointment of two ad-hoc judges to SC

ISLAMABAD: The Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) on Friday approved the appointment of Justice (retd) Sardar Tariq Masood and Justice (retd) Mazhar Miankhel as ad-hoc judges to the Supreme Court (SC), ARY News reported.

Sources privy to the development said that the Judicial Commission meeting considered the proposals for the appointment of ad hoc judges and approved two names for the roles with the majority of votes.

The sources said that the apex court’s Justice Munib Akhtar opposed the appointment of Justice (retd) Sardar Tariq Masood as an ad-hoc judge.

After Justice Munib Akhtar’s disagreement, the name of Justice (retd) Sardar Tariq Masood was approved for the ad-hoc role with a majority of 8-1.

The sources added that three members of the Judicial Commission also opposed the appointment of Justice (retd) Mazhar Miankhel as he was okayed with a ratio of 6-3.

Both the former judges have been appointed as ad-hoc judges for a period of one year.

Besides these two former judges, the names of Justice (retd) Mushir Alam and Justice (retd) Maqbool Baqar were also being considered for the ad-hoc role before they declined the offer.

Justice Alam retired from the Supreme Court on Aug 21, 2021; Justice Baqar, who served as the Sindh chief minister during the last caretaker set-up, retired on April 4, 2022; Justice Miankhel retired on July 13, 2022; and Justice Masood on March 10, 2024.

READ: Another judge declines SC ad-hoc judge role

Earlier on Thursday, the Pakistan Bar Council called for the formation  of more courts in the country through a constitutional amendment.

The council has also expressed support for the appointment of ad hoc judges to help expedite the decision-making process in cases.

“Currently, a significant amount of the Supreme Court’s time is spent hearing political cases, and the establishment of a constitutional court would help alleviate this burden,” the PBC viewed.