ISLAMABAD, Dec 4: The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that the judges must not only possess profound knowledge and deep insight but also be men of integrity and capable of holding the scales of justice under all circumstance.

A three-judge bench of the apex court headed by Justice Qazi Muhammad Farooq, in its judgment on the appeals of 13 judicial officers, observed: “Islam enjoins that those who perform the function of judges must not only possess profound knowledge and deep insight but also be men of integrity and capable of holding the scales of justice even under all circumstance.”

It further observed that “although all the civil servants are bound to be honest having unblemished integrity, the judicial officers are supposed to excel in this trait of character in view of the sacred and sensitive nature of their duties and pivotal position which justice occupies in Islam.”

The SC bench consisted of Justice Qazi Muhammad Farooq, Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar and Justice Sardar Muhammad Raza Khan,

The Supreme Court which released detailed reasoning for its judgment on Thursday, also quoted Quranic verses to highlight the importance of justice in Islam.

The apex court also remarked that the judicial officers were expected to guard their reputation jealously, and the Reporting or Countersigning Officers are obliged to assess their conduct after careful consideration and without being led away by any prejudice or bias.

While rejecting the petitions, the court observed that it was true that ACRs of some of the appellants were written and adverse remarks conveyed to them after considerable delay and the Reporting Officers or Countersigning Officers had not adhered to the timeframe envisaged by the Punjab Estacode.

The civil judges who filed petitions included Chaudhry Shabbir Hussain, Rao Muhammad Akbar, Chaudhry Muhammad Hanif, Tahir Pervaiz, Malik Muhammad Aslam Jawad, Khalid Mahmud Cheema, Muhammad Nawaz Bhatti and Ijaz Mahmood Chaudhry. The Lahore High Court filed petition against the decision of tribunal in the petition of Mian Muhammad Younas.

Advocate Malik Muhammad Azam Rasool and others appeared for the Lahore High Court, while Advocate Malik Muhammad Qayyum and Chaudhry Naseer Ahmad Bhutta represented the appellant judges.

During the tenure of Chief Justice Lahore High Court, Falak Sher, the ACRs of nine civil and additional sessions judges were adverse on the grounds that they did not enjoy good reputation. Due to adverse remarks in their ACRs, their promotions were stopped.