Opposition members boycott JCP meeting on high court appointments

The opposition's representatives on the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) have boycotted today's meeting to consider the appointment and confirmation of additional judges in the Sindh, Islamabad and Peshawar High Courts, reported the 24NewsHD TV channel on Monday.

The JCP is scheduled to hold three separate sessions to deliberate on judicial appointments and confirmations in the three high courts. The Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP), Justice Yahya Afridi, will chair these sessions.

According to the channel report, the two opposition members, Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and Senator Ali Zafar, have decided to continue their previously announced boycott of the Judicial Commission's proceedings. 

As a result, they will remain absent from the meetings considering the appointment and confirmation of high court judges.

Sources said the opposition leaders have reaffirmed their decision to stay away from the commission's sessions, maintaining the boycott they had announced earlier.

Under the schedule, the first session, beginning at 2:00pm, will consider the appointment of five additional judges to the Sindh High Court (SHC).

A second meeting at 3:00pm will discuss the appointment of three additional judges to the Islamabad High Court (BHC).

The final session, scheduled for 4:00pm, will focus on the appointment of five additional judges to the Peshawar High Court (PHC), while the commission will also consider the confirmation of two serving additional judges of the PHC.

The meetings follow the completion of the preliminary selection process earlier this month. On 13 July, a committee of the Judicial Commission, headed by Constitutional Bench judge Justice Hassan Azhar Rizvi, concluded interviews of candidates seeking appointment as additional judges of the Islamabad High Court and the Balochistan High Court.

The committee interviewed seven candidates for the Islamabad High Court and 20 candidates for the Balochistan High Court before finalising its report for submission to the Judicial Commission.

The interview panel comprised Justice Hassan Azhar Rizvi, Justice Aalia Neelum and Justice Sarfaraz Dogar. Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan, Senator Farooq H Naek, Senator Ali Zafar and Ahsan Bhoon also served as members of the committee.

Earlier this month, Advocate Supreme Court Ishtiaq Ahmad was appointed as a member of the Judicial Commission for a two-year term following his nomination by the Islamabad Bar Council.

The commission, headed by Chief Justice Yahya Afridi, comprises representatives of the judiciary, the federal government, Parliament and the Pakistan Bar Council.

Reporters: Amanat Gishkori and Tayyab Saif