ISLAMABAD: Confusion surrounding the supposed relocation of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to its former premises in G-10 has deepened after reports cited a November 7 letter that directed the shifting of official records to the old building.

The circulation of the letter on social media quickly gave rise to speculation that the high court itself was being moved, a claim denied by IHC senior hierarchy and the Islamabad High Court Bar Association (IHCBA).

According to officials familiar with the development, the order to shift the record was issued solely to clear four courtrooms previously occupied by judges of the Federal Shariat Court (FSC).

These courtrooms were urgently needed for the shifting of the FSC judges as the authorities had planned establishment of the newly-formed Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) in the building meant for FSC.

High court bar says administrative letter wrongly interpreted as relocation order

Under the initial plan, the FCC was to be housed in the FSC building, but judges of the Shariat Court resisted the unplanned relocation and refused to vacate their premises.

Their firm stance forced the authorities to make alternative arrangements, resulting in the temporary accommodation of FCC judges inside the IHC building.

So far, seven of the FCC’s sanctioned strength of 13 judges have been appointed through presidential orders, all of whom have taken oath and been allotted separate courtrooms within the IHC.

Court insiders however clarified that this arrangement was temporary and should not be misconstrued as a signal that the IHC was being moved out of its current Shahrah-i-Dastur premises.

IHC’s senior officials denied the rumours saying that ample space had been given to the FCC where it could easily perform its functions.

However, the FCC judges are not comfortable as they are still using their chambers in the Supreme Court building because of the paucity of space in the IHC.

At a press conference, IHCBA Secretary Manzoor Ahmed Jajja dismissed the speculation as “misleading and baseless”, stating that the administrative letter was wrongly interpreted as a relocation order.

Recalling the long struggle for a permanent high court building in the federal capital, he noted that the judiciary in Islamabad began in a rented structure in Aabpara in 1980. The Islamabad High Court was established in 2007, abolished in 2009, and re-established in 2010. The current building was secured largely through the efforts of former IHC judge Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui, and it took more than a decade to shift the court to Shahrah-i-Dastur. “The High Court is not going anywhere,” he reaffirmed.

Jajja also said while the FCC was welcomed by the bar after its creation under the 27th Constitutional Amendment, disagreements within the judiciary should be resolved by judges themselves. “The judges resigned from their jobs; they have to fight their own battles. We stand with the institution, not individual conflicts,” he added.

In contrast, the Islamabad District Bar Association has expressed support for shifting the high court back to G-10. In a letter to Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, Bar President Chaudhry Naeem Ali Gujjar and Secretary Abdul Halim described the relocation as a step that would enhance convenience for lawyers and litigants while improving judicial efficiency and reducing delays. They assured full cooperation with the Law Ministry and the IHC administration should the government decide to proceed with the move.

Meanwhile, sources confirmed that a high-level meeting was expected soon to decide the final seating arrangements for the IHC and FCC.

The meeting will determine whether the IHC will remain at Shahrah-i-Dastur, whether the FCC will shift elsewhere, or whether a mutual exchange of premises will be considered. Until then, officials stress that no decision has been taken regarding the relocation of IHC.

Published in Dawn, November 19th, 2025