ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) vice chairman Muhammad Ahsan Bhoon has requested Supreme Court Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar to reconsider the Oct 12 decision of the Judicial Commission (JC) in which seven judges of the Lahore High Court (LHC) were dropped whereas the tenure of an equal number of the judges was extended for another year.

“I request your lordship and other learned judge members of JC to reconsider their recent decision — not in anger but in a modest and objective manner,” said a letter written by the PBC vice chairman to the chief justice on Thursday.

Mr Bhoon expressed the hope that reconsidering this most unhappy decision of JC would be carried out without making its undoing a matter of the commission’s prestige. It is crucial that decisions of JC are made on the principles of fairness and non-discrimination, the letter says.

On Oct 26, Mr Bhoon appreciated the decision of the Parliamentary Committee (PC) on the appointment of judges who did not endorse the Oct 12 recommendations of JC and refer the matter back to it for reconsideration.

In his letter, Mr Bhoon stated that on behalf of the legal fraternity he was taking the liberty of communicating deep concern over the methodology adopted and criteria considered while appointing judges to the high courts. The recent process of confirmations, rejections and extensions granted to additional judges of LHC was a point at hand.

This is an opportunity for making amends and if it is lost, the legal community as well as the public will lose confidence in the system of justice and the independence of the judiciary, the letter says.

Previously also, Mr Bhoon observed, he had expressed his serious reservations on the manner of “selection and assessment” of merit while appointing judges.

Subsequently, he stated, he regretted the non-transparent manner in which ad hoc judges of LHC were dropped, their confirmation extended or their appointments confirmed.

The lawyers, the letter said, were best judges of the performance of members of the bench. There is almost unanimity that the process and decisions were not transparent. It was flawed and riddled with subjectivity, the letter says. Our strong reservations, which were widely shared in bar associations, were also supported by the parliamentary committee which found the courage to request JC to review its decision.

Published in Dawn, November 4th, 2017