SCBA rejects judges’ appointment through parliamentary committee
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) on Friday rejected the proposed process for appointment of judges through the parliamentary committee, terming it against the independence of judiciary.
Addressing a press conference at the SC premises, SCBA President Qazi Muhammad Anwar — flanked by SCBA General Secretary Raja Zulqarnain — said they would not allow judges to be appointed on a political basis and the lawyers’ community would protest against any such move.
Earlier, the parliament’s Constitutional Reforms Committee (CRC) had announced that its members had reached an agreement that judges in the superior judiciary would be appointed through a parliamentary commission.
The CRC had recommended there would be two commissions — judicial and parliamentary. The judicial commission would make the recommendations, but the final approval would be made by the parliamentary commission.
Both the commissions would have half of its members from the opposition and the other half from the government. The SCBA termed the move was another attack on the independence of the judiciary.
Anwar said that parliament’s legitimacy was questionable as the February 18, 2008 elections — held during the regime of former president Pervez Musharraf — had been boycotted by several national parties.
He demanded the government fully implement the SC’s verdict on the National Reconciliation Ordinance. The SCBA president also expressed concern over the meeting between Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani over the appointment of judges. He said the meeting could become a precedent for the appointment of judges in high courts and the SC.
Source: Daily Times
Date:2/27/2010
” 
” 
” 
” 
