ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Supreme Court Qazi Faez Isa is considered a favourite of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif government. The Sharif government is so sure of him that it named him to the post 88 days before Justice Isa was to assume charge. As per existing rules, Justice Isa is set to retire on October 25 on attaining the age of 65 (born October 26, 1959) just 10 days later.
There is an established practice that the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court becomes the Chief Justice. However, notification regarding senior-most judge Justice Mansoor Ali Shah’s elevation as Justice Isa’s successor has not been issued yet. Why? To put it mildly, the government does not like Justice Shah and will go the whole hog to prevent him from becoming the Chief Justice of Pakistan.
How critical is the judiciary’s support deemed by Shahbaz Sharif government can be gauged from the fact that it is bringing in a constitutional amendment to supersede Justice Shah. It has not been able to move the relevant amendment in Parliament because it has failed to muster enough numbers. The PML-N of Sharif and Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) headed by Bilawal Bhutto Zardari are both trying to persuade Maulana Fazal ul Rehman to support them in getting the constitutional amendment passed, according to reports in several Pakistani newspapers.
Why is Shahbaz Sharif scared of Justice Mansoor Ali Shah becoming the Chief Justice of Pakistan? Are there any genuine reasons for the Sharif government to stall Justice Shah’s elevation? Plenty, it seems. For one, many writ petitions were filed in February 2024 after the elections of the National Assembly (Parliament of Pakistan). Most of these petitions have challenged the election of PML-N and PPP parliamentarians. These petitions were filed by countless lawyers of Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI) party.
These elections are widely believed to be rigged and at the behest of Pakistan Army Chief General Asim Munir. Long before these elections, Nawaz Sharif was projected as a sure winner and would-be Prime Minister for the 4th time. However, despite hectic efforts of the security forces, intelligence agencies and Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), PML-N could not get enough seats to form a government on its own.
Part of the problem was the allegations raised by the PPP and PTI all over Pakistan prior to elections that these were being rigged. It is a different matter that the PPP joined hands with the PML-N after the elections and got may plum posts, including that of President for Asif Ali Zardari. The problem that the government led by Sharif anticipates is that if Justice Shah succeeds current CJP Justice Isa, hearings on all (or most) election petitions can start! That is a nightmarish scenario both for General Asim Munir and PM Sharif.
Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, the senior-most judge second to Justice Isa, has also given some verdicts in the recent past which have rocked the government. Ironically, Justice Shah is considered as someone who clearly believes in the supremacy of Parliament. Yet, it is in Parliament where his fate hangs in balance and he may not be allowed to become the next CJP. He is considered a serious danger to the present regime as Justice Shah had granted bail to former PM Imran Khan in the bail case, according to a report in The Friday Times.
If the government manages to get the constitutional amendment passed in Parliament, it will be able to supersede Justice Shah. The amendment proposes that three senior-most judges be considered for appointment as Chief Justice, not that senior-most judge becomes Chief Justice automatically. Justice Munib Akhtar and Justice Yahya Afridi are next in seniority to Justice Shah. If rumours/grapevine in power corridors of Islamabad is to be believed, the government plans to supersede Justice Shah as also Justice Akhtar. It wants to appoint Justice Afridi, the judge placed third in the race for the top post, as CJP Isa’s successor, The Friday Times report says.
The government also hopes that superseding Justice Shah and Justice Akhtar will force them to resign and that will help it. But what if neither Justice Shah nor Justice Akhtar resign on being superseded?
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