Seven new judges sworn in at Supreme Court
CJP Yahya Afridi administers oaths to six regular and one ad hoc judges
The Supreme Court’s power reshaped with seven new judges as six regular judges and one ad hoc judge taking the oath of office in a ceremony held in Isalamabad on Friday morning.
Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Yahya Afridi administered the oath to the newly appointed judges, reported the 24NewsHD TV channel.
Among those sworn in were Justice Aamir Farooq, Justice Shafi Siddiqui, Justice Hashim Kakar, Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim, Justice Salahuddin, Justice Shakeel Ahmed, and ad hoc judge Justice Gul Hassan.
The oath-taking ceremony was attended by Supreme Court judges, Attorney General, senior lawyers, journalists, and judicial staff, along with office-bearers of the Supreme Court Bar Association and Pakistan Bar Council.
The appointments were approved earlier on February 10 by the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) in a meeting chaired by Chief Justice Yahya Afridi.
The commission finalised the elevation of six high court judges to the Supreme Court, including Chief Justices of Sindh, Balochistan, and Peshawar High Courts.
Additionally, Justice Gul Hassan was appointed as an ad hoc judge under Article 181 of the Constitution.
The JCP session, however, saw some internal differences, as Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Munib Akhtar boycotted the meeting, while Barrister Ali Zafar, despite initial objections, attended to voice his reservations.
Reporter: Hashar Warriach