IHC judges say challenged judges transfer not for personal gains but for judicial independence

The five sitting judges of the Islamabad High Court have submitted a written response to the Supreme Court, challenging the recent transfer of judges and warning of a systemic assault on judicial independence, reported 24NewsHD TV channel Thursday.

The statement, filed in connection with an ongoing case regarding transfers within the IHC, accuses the administrative decisions of undermining the court’s collective authority and integrity.

The judges emphasised that their petition was not filed for personal gain or to protect individual seniority but as a final resort to defend the Constitution, the rule of law, and the sanctity of the judiciary. They asserted that justice is a sacred trust to be dispensed without fear or favour, and judges must remain accountable for their actions both in this world and the hereafter.

Highlighting a shared understanding of the Constitution, the judges argued that a High Court is not the domain of its Chief Justice alone but a collegial body composed of all its judges. Any attempt to turn it into a "one-man show" was described as not just intolerable, but dangerous.

They warned that judicial verdicts lack moral authority when issued under compromised independence, stating that a judge who forsakes that independence cannot be trusted to uphold justice.

The judges also expressed concern that their efforts to resolve the matter internally had failed, prompting them to take the difficult but necessary step of approaching the Supreme Court. Their statement described the current actions as a form of "commandeering" of the Islamabad High Court and the symbolic "demolition" of its institutional sanctity.

They further noted that while the judicial code discourages involvement in public controversy, remaining silent in the face of constitutional violations would be a dereliction of their oath. The filing of this petition, they stressed, was a principled stand for judicial independence and not a political or personal maneuver.