Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi has decided to appoint three high court judges as acting judges of the Supreme Court to help clear the growing backlog of pending cases, Dunya News reported.
According to sources in the Supreme Court cited by Dunya News, the judges proposed for the acting appointments are Justice Sadaqat Ali Khan and Justice Shahbaz Rizvi of the Lahore High Court, and Justice Ijaz Anwar of the Peshawar High Court.
The move is aimed at easing the shortage of judges in the apex court and speeding up the disposal of cases. The Supreme Court has a sanctioned strength of 34 judges, but 16 seats are currently vacant following the retirement of Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail. The shortage, the report said, has added to the caseload and made it harder to decide pending cases on time.
A meeting of the Judicial Commission, chaired by Chief Justice Yahya Afridi, is expected to be held later this month to consider the proposed appointments. Further steps regarding the appointments are expected after that meeting.
Dunya News also reported that the chief justice hosted a dinner for judges of the Peshawar High Court in connection with the matter. Judges posted at the Rawalpindi Bench of the Lahore High Court were also invited, along with Justice Syed Shahbaz Rizvi, who heads the Multan Bench. Justice Mirza Waqas Rauf, Justice Raza Qureshi, Justice Syed Farhad Ali Shah and several other judges attended the dinner, according to the report.
The appointments, if approved, would bring three experienced high court judges to the Supreme Court on an acting basis at a time when the court is working through a heavy pendency. Acting judges serve for a limited period and are drawn from the high courts to help the apex court manage its workload.
The report is based on sources within the Supreme Court, and the appointments will only take effect after the Judicial Commission considers the proposal. The commission, which includes senior judges and representatives from the legal community, plays a central role in appointments to the superior judiciary, and its decision will determine whether the three names move forward.
