National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq has written a letter and submitted nominations from parliamentary parties to the Supreme Judicial Council on the issue of formation of a Judicial Commission for the appointment of judges to the superior judiciary.
The nominations were made following consultations with Senate Chairman and parliamentary leaders.
Sadiq’s nominations include members from both the National Assembly and Senate. PTI's Omar Ayub and PML-N's Sheikh Aftab will represent the National Assembly, while senators Farooq Naik and Shibli Faraz have been chosen to represent the Senate.
Additionally, Roshan Khursheed Bharucha has been nominated on the women's seat in the commission.
These nominations, forwarded to the secretary of the Judicial Commission, come after the passage of the 26th Amendment, which allows for five members of parliament to join the Judicial Commission, with equal representation from the government and opposition. The commission is authorised to appoint judges to the Supreme Court, high courts, and the Federal Shariat Court.
The Supreme Court has confirmed receiving the nominations.
A spokesperson for the National Assembly stated that Speaker Ayaz Sadiq sent the names to the council after consultation with the Senate chairman and all parliamentary parties.
Sources reveal that the government and opposition had finalized their nominations for the Judicial Commission after National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq wrote to the leaders of parliamentary parties to nominate their members. The opposition members nominated from the National Assembly and Senate were approved by PTI Founder Imran Khan.
A recent amendment to Article 175-A has expanded the commission to a 13-member body, including the chief justice, the three most senior Supreme Court judges, the senior-most judge of the constitutional benches, the law minister, the attorney general for Pakistan, a nominee from the Pakistan Bar Council, two members each from the National Assembly and Senate, and a representative from a minority or female from outside parliament.
Under Article 175-A, the commission will nominate a candidate for each vacancy of a judge in the Supreme Court, a high court or the Federal Shariat Court by a majority vote. The nominee will then be forwarded to the prime minister, who will recommend the candidate to the president for final appointment.
Additionally, the commission will assess the annual performance of high court judges. If a judge’s performance is deemed inadequate, the commission may allow time for improvement. If, after this period, performance remains unsatisfactory, the commission will report the issue to the Supreme Judicial Council, which addresses cases of judicial misconduct.
The 26th Amendment also grants the commission authority to establish performance evaluation standards, and one-third of commission members may request a meeting by submitting a written requisition to the chairperson, who must then convene the meeting within 15 days.
