HYDERABAD, Nov 8: A sacked judge of Sindh High Court, Justice Zafar Ahmed Sherwani, claimed on Thursday that he was still a judge but he wouldn’t comment as to why he didn’t take fresh oath under Provisional Constitution Order (PCO).

He said that he didn’t hesitate even for a moment to take his decision of not taking oath of allegiance under PCO. Later, talking to a foreign radio service’s correspondent, he said that he was still under pressure to take fresh oath.

Mr Sherwani had been serving as a session judge in Hyderabad before having been elevated to the Sindh High Court recently.

He was among those several judges, who didn’t take fresh oath under PCO. “I am still a judge, therefore, I will not comment on various things,” he told journalists in High Court Bar Association (HCBA) Hyderabad chapter meeting where he had been invited to tea with the bar members.

He was garlanded by Pakistan Bar Council member Yusuf Leghari and other members. He shook hands and shared light moments with them. He arrived there with a prior commitment by lawyers that there will be no slogans.

The sacked judge declined an offer of tea by Justice Mrs. Qaiser Iqbal who has taken oath under PCO and was sitting at Hyderabad circuit bench of Sindh High Court.

He said he had seen many PCOs in his life. “I had made a commitment that if ever faced such a situation, I would refuse,” Justice Sherwani remarked.

He said he had told his brother judges that even if all of them took fresh oath he would not be doing so because he will be held accountable on the day of judgement for his deeds.

“We have to accept slavery of Allah Almighty”, he remarked.

Later, speaking to a correspondent of a foreign radio service, he said that wordings of PCO indicate that it was an interim constitution that requires judges to swear their allegiance to one individual and it was not possible for any human to accept slavery of a man.

In his brief interview, he said that fresh oath always raises question about one’s conscience.

He observed that this time the number of judges who refused to take oath under PCO was higher as compared to 1999 when only five of them had refused.

He supported sacked Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry’s initiative of suo motu actions.