Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) has issued a notice to the attorney general of Pakistan over a petition seeking appointment of judges to superior courts through a competitive examination.

A two-member bench of the top court headed by Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamli took up the petition filed by the Lawyers Foundation for Justice.

The petition seeks to end the powers of the chief justices of superior courts to nominate lawyers for the slots of judges at high courts. The petitioner prayed that appointment of lawyers as judges of high courts should be made through a competition examination.

During the course of hearing of the instant petition on Monday, Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamli observed that an important legal matter had been raised in the petition.

AK Dogar, counsel for the petitioner, contended that as per Rule 3, Sub Rule 2 of the Rules 2010 the chief justices of the high courts were empowered to nominate to the Judicial Commission the lawyers having more than 10 years of practicing experience for appointment as judges of high courts on vacant posts. Due to this, he said, a majority of lawyers who were appointed judges of high courts were sons of former judges or close relatives of reputed lawyers.

Dogar pleaded that the rule under which the chief justices of high courts were empowered to nominate lawyers for appointment as judges of high courts be declared ultra vires to Articles 193 (2), A, A-2, 18 and Article 4 of the Constitution. He submitted that in many countries, including the United Kingdom, judges of high courts were appointed through competitive exams, but in Pakistan an individual had the powers to nominate the judges.

He prayed to the court to declare Rule 3 Sub Rule 2 of Rules 2010 of the Judicial Commission as null and void and issue directives that appointment of judges of high courts should be made through a competitive examination.

The top court issued the notice to the attorney general of Pakistan and adjourned the hearing until end of the court vacation.