ISLAMABAD: Justice Athar Minallah has implored Chief Justice Yahya Afridi to consider convening a judicial conference to have institutional dialogue with all superior judges for safeguarding the independence of the judiciary.

In his letter to the CJP, Justice Athar Minallah proposed a candid and open discussion on the state of the judiciary, the challenges to its independence, and the steps necessary to reclaim the people’s trust, saying it had become inevitable.

The judiciary is at a perilous crossroads and the truth must be spoken at this moment of reckoning, Justice Minallah observed, adding that the need for introspection was undeniable at this critical juncture. And silence in the face of systemic erosion of judicial independence would only amount to complicity, Justice Minallah cautioned.

Lawyers express resolve to resist controversial tweaks, erosion of judiciary’s independence

Earlier, senior puisne judge Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and a number of retired judges and senior counsel sent letters to the CJ seeking a full court meeting for the independence of the judiciary.

Structure of judiciary

The declared object of amending the Constitution includes a desire to change the structure of the judiciary, Justice Minallah feared, adding that let the convening of the judicial convention be an opportunity for truth and reconciliation within the institution so that “we have an opportunity to acknowledge our collective shortcomings.

“It is our duty to ensure that future ge­­nerations inherit a judiciary that stands unwaveringly with the Constitution, the people and the promise of justice, the letter said.

It is our humble conviction that the judiciary’s foremost duty of loyalty lies not in self-preservation nor in deference to power but in allegiance to the people and to the Constitution, it added.

Justice Minallah also highlighted that jurisprudence had too often bowed before power and might instead of standing on the side of the people. He highlighted the removal and execution of former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, saying it “remains one of the gravest and most unpardonable betrayals of our oath and of the people’s trust”.

He further said that the persecution of Benazir Bhutto by “unelected elements” within state institutions and the disqualification of Nawaz Sharif and the harassment of him and his daughter were a “continuation of a pattern of suppression of the people’s will when the interests of the unelected elite were threatened”.

Lawyers’ opposition

Similarly, former Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) presidents namely Hamid Khan, Muneer A. Malik, and Abid Shahid Zuberi, in a media interaction, called upon the lawyers, civil society, the media, and every citizen to rise and join a decisive nationwide movement to restore the Constitution and protect the independence of the judiciary.

They categorically rejected the 26th as well as the 27th amendments, particularly the proposed Federal Constitutional Court, stating it was an illegal creation designed to hijack constitutional interpretation and neutralise judicial independence.

Meanwhile, some 145 lawyers in a representation condemned the 27th Amendment and called upon the authorities to put an end to the repeated tampering of the Constitution.

We stand ready to take all necessary legal steps, including peaceful protests, to safeguard the independence of the judiciary and protect the rights of all citizens, the letter said.

Published in Dawn, November 12th, 2025