ISLAMABAD: For the first time since the 27th Constitutional Amendment, a seven-member Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) committee interviewed seven candidates on Monday for three vacant judges’ seats at the Islamabad High Court (IHC).

The interviews were held under the recently approved mechanism that requires a committee to assess candidates and submit its recommendations to the full commission before final nominations are made.

The interview committee was headed by Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) Justice Hassan Azhar Rizvi and comprised Lahore High Court Chief Justice Aalia Neelum, IHC Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar, Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan, Senator Farooq H. Naek, Senator Syed Ali Zafar and Pakistan Bar Council representative Ahsan Bhoon.

According to the interview schedule, District and Sessions Judge Shahrukh Arjumand, advocates Umair Majeed Malik, Ayyaz Shaukat, Wajid Mughal, Syed Intikhab Hussain Shah and incumbent Islamabad High Court Bar Association President Syed Wajid Ali Gillani appeared before the committee.

Sources told Dawn that the committee questioned the candidates about their expertise in their respective fields, including civil, criminal and tax law, besides seeking their views on maintaining courtroom decorum, handling difficult situations during proceedings and managing judicial conduct in unexpected circumstances.

According to the sources, the committee put comparatively more questions to the nominees proposed by the IHC chief justice — District and Sessions Judge Shahrukh Arjumand, advocates Umair Majeed Malik and Ayyaz Shaukat — than to the remaining candidates.

The name of Gillani was proposed by Islamabad Bar Council and Pakistan Bar Council, while PPP Senator Farooq H Naek proposed the names of Syed Qamar Hussain Sabzwari and Syed Intikhab Hussain Shah.

The interviews were conducted under the new JCP rules approved last month after months of deliberations over a transparent mechanism for assessing candidates for elevation to the superior judiciary.

The seven-member interview panel was constituted after the commission opted for a broader committee instead of a proposed five-member body.

Under the approved framework, the committee includes a judge of the Federal Constitutional Court or Supreme Court, the senior-most chief justice among the high courts, the chief justice of the concerned high court, the attorney general, two parliamentary members of the JCP and the Pakistan Bar Council representative.

The introduction of interviews had earlier generated debate within the legal fraternity, particularly among lawyers in Islamabad, some of whom argued that candidates for constitutional courts should not be subjected to interviews by a committee outside the full Judicial Commission. The JCP, however, approved the interview rules as part of reforms aimed at standardising the assessment and evaluation process for judicial appointments.

The interview committee will now submit its report to the Judicial Commission of Pakistan, which is scheduled to meet on July 20 to consider the recommendations and finalise nominations for the three vacant IHC judges’ positions.

Published in Dawn, July 14th, 2026