Islamabad (TDI): The Special Parliamentary Committee (SPC) has nominated Justice Yahya Afridi as the new Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP).
Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar announced the development after the conclusion of the SPC’s meeting.
“The parliamentary committee has developed a consensus on Justice Yahya Afridi’s name as the new Chief Justice,” he said, as he briefly spoke to the media persons after the meeting.
The law minister added that the committee has forwarded a summary to the Prime Minister in this regard.
Justice Yahya was picked from the top three most senior judges. He was the third in the seniority list, after Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, and Justice Munib Akhtar. However, the parliamentary committee.
Read More: Special Parliamentary Committee Meets to Appoint New CJP
Speaker National Assembly Ayaz Sadiq had constituted a 12-member committee on Monday for the appointment of the CJP. However, only eight members of the committee are attending the meeting after Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Sunni Ittihad Council (SIC) announced a boycott.
The SPC was originally scheduled to meet at 4 pm today, but the meeting had to be delayed due to non-participation from PTI and the SIC. The Speaker called the opposition parties in his chamber to develop a consensus on the matter, but Barrister Gohar refused his party’s participation.
The incumbent Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa is retiring on October 26. After CJP Isa, the most senior judge Justice Mansoor Ali Shah was set to become the next CJP.
Read More: 26th Amendment Ensures Parliamentary Supremacy: PM
However, after the 26th Constitutional Amendment Act, of 2024, a 12-member parliamentary committee will select the new CJP from a panel of the three most senior Apex Court judges.
As of now, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Munib Akhtar, and Justice Yahya Afridi are the three most senior judges in the top court. The SPC will nominate any one of these three judges.
After the amendments, the term for the CJP has been set at three years.
