PESHAWAR: The Judicial Com­mission of Pakistan (JCP) has done an injustice to judges of the Peshawar High Court by not elevating any of them to the Supreme Court over the last few years, a member of the commission from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa observed on Thursday.

Ahmad Farooq Khattak also expressed concern over the delay in appointment of the high court’s new chief justice on retirement of the incumbent.

In a strongly worded letter addressed to the JCP’s Chairman (the Chief Justice of Pakistan), Mr Khattak stated it was incumbent upon the JCP chairman to have given his attention to successive retirements this week of two chief justices of the PHC and to have convened a meeting of the commission to make timely appointment of a permanent chief justice.

“In circumstances and on serious reservations shown by the legal fraternity of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, I earnestly request to immediately convene a meeting of the Commission for appointment of the senior most judge as Chief Justice in accordance with the law, norms and settled principles,” the JCP member stated.

In anticipation of the retirement of the Chief Justice (Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan) and Justice Rooh-ul-Amin Khan the next day, the federal government had notified Justice Amin as acting chief justice for March 31 (today), the day he would attain superannuation, followed by another notification whereby the next senior judge, Justice Musarrat Hilali, was appointed as Chief Justice on acting charge basis with effect from April 1 (tomorrow).

KP’s representative in the body calls for urgent meeting to appoint Peshawar High Court chief justice

The JCP has yet to schedule a meeting under Article 175-A of the Constitution for the appointment of a regular chief justice of the PHC.

“I am constrained to say that the serious neglect of the Judicial Commission towards the highest courts of the federating unit is unfortunate and raises serious questions in minds of the legal fraternity and the public at large,” Mr Khattak said.

He said it was not an isolated instance wherein the JCP had “failed to perform its duty with impartiality” and “regard for merit and seniority”.

‘Sense of alienation’

As representative of the province in the JCP, Ahmad Khattak added, he could not look the other way and ignore the serious “injustice” meted out to the judges of the Peshawar High Court vis-à-vis elevation to the apex court.

The member maintained that this pattern of dealing with the judges of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had already created a sense of alienation in the judiciary and the legal fraternity.

“The discriminatory treatment has created public perception that federating units are not treated in an equal manner even by the judicial organ of the state embodied in the Constitution.

“This certainly doesn’t augur well for the future of the country, particularly when the judiciary loses public confidence,” Mr Khattak wrote.

Published in Dawn, March 31st, 2023