JCP recommends making 11 ad hoc LHC judges permanent

Published January 15, 2026
CJP Yahya Afridi presides over a meeting of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan, at Supreme Court in Islamabad on Jan 15, 2026. — SC website
CJP Yahya Afridi presides over a meeting of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan, at Supreme Court in Islamabad on Jan 15, 2026. — SC website

The Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) on Thursday recommended the confirmation of 11 additional judges for the Lahore High Court (LHC) out of a total list of 13.

Presided over by Chief Justice of Pakis­tan (CJP) Yahya Afridi, the JCP met at the Supreme Court (SC), a press release issued by the SC said.

After due consideration of the relevant data forms, ant­ecedents and evaluation material placed before it, the JCP, by a majority, recommended the confirmation of 11 additional judges of the LHC as permanent judges.

These were Justices Hassan Nawaz Makhdoom, Malik Waqar Haider Awan, Sardar Akbar Ali, Syed Ahsan Raza Kazmi, Malik Javid Iqbal Wains, Muhammad Jawad Zafar, Khalid Ishaq, Malik Muhammad Awais Khalid, Chaudhry Sultan Mahmood, Tanveer Ahmad Sheikh, and a female judge, Abher Gul Khan.

The JCP, by a majority, recommended the extension of Additional Judge Tariq Mahmood Bajwa for another six months.

Additional Judge Raja Ghazanfar Ali Khan was “not confirmed”, the press release added.

This week, the JCP, in separate meetings, has recommended making additional judges of multiple high courts permanent, approving three of the Islamabad High Court, 10 of the Sindh High Court, six of the Peshawar High Court and one of the Balochistan High Court.

The confirmation of three IHC ad-hoc judges — Additional Judges Muhammad Azam Khan, Muhammad Asif and Inaam Ameen Minhas —was made despite a letter by JCP member and IHC senior puisne judge Mohsin Akhtar Kayani questioning the competence of his colleagues.

Opinion

Editorial

Words that wound
18 Jun, 2026

Words that wound

LONG before a church is burned, a mosque vandalised or a mob assembled, the poison that enables such violence has...
‘New urban province’
18 Jun, 2026

‘New urban province’

CONSIDERING the advance state of urban decay that affects Karachi, voices are often raised calling for the megacity,...
Punjab budget: mixed bag
18 Jun, 2026

Punjab budget: mixed bag

PUNJAB’S budget for FY27 is a mix of good and bad political choices, with a cash-strapped centre tightening the...
Spoiler alert
17 Jun, 2026

Spoiler alert

AFTER the temporary peace deal between the US and Iran is physically signed in Geneva on Friday, an arduous process...
Storm-tested cities
17 Jun, 2026

Storm-tested cities

THE deaths caused by the latest spell of monsoon rains in KP and Punjab illustrate how quickly severe weather can...
Chakwal tragedy
17 Jun, 2026

Chakwal tragedy

A NINE-year-old girl is dead because a Punjab Crime Control Department gunman mistook her family’s car for a...