In a ceremony held at the highest court on Friday, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi swore in six recently appointed Supreme Court justices.
Among the new hires are former Chief Justices Muhammad Hashim Khan Kakar of the Balochistan High Court (BHC), Muhammad Shafi Siddiqui of the Sindh High Court (SHC), Salahuddin Panhwar of the SHC, Shakeel Ahmad of the Peshawar High Court (PHC), Aamer Farooq of the Islamabad High Court (IHC), and Ishtiaq Ibrahim of the PHC. President Asif Ali Zardari gave his approval for their nominations.
Justice Mian Gul Hassan Aurangzeb was also sworn in as an acting Supreme Court judge by CJP Afridi. After being approved by the president and the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP), the Ministry of Law and Justice had sent out notices for their elevation the day before.
Justice Junaid Ghaffar was sworn in as the acting SHC chief justice in Karachi by Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori, who also announced his appointment through the law ministry.
There was some controversy surrounding the judicial elevations because Supreme Court Justices Mansoor Ali Shah and Munib Akhtar, as well as PTI heavyweights Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and Senator Ali Zafar, did not attend the JCP meeting. The CJP had been requested by a number of SC judges and Senator Zafar to postpone the meeting until the legal challenge to the 26th Constitutional Amendment was settled and issues regarding the seniority of IHC judges were handled.
