MUZAFFARABAD, March 22: A division bench of the Azad Jammu Kashmir High Court here on Thursday held preliminary hearings on a writ petition filed by a group of lawyers challenging the recent appointment of two judges in the high court.

The bench, comprising acting Chief Justice Sardar Mohammad Nawaz Khan and Justice Ghulam Mustafa Mughal, called comments from 10 respondents, including the two judges, before or on April 9, the next date of hearing.

The petition filed by Advocate Shaukat Aziz and seven other lawyers maintains that the January 23, 2007, appointment notification of Justice Mohammad Younis Tahir and Justice Raja Rafiullah Sultani is "in violation of a mandatory constitutional requirement and hence is void, ineffective and of no legal effect".