ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has approved the appointment of Justice Aminuddin Khan as the first Chief Justice of the newly established Federal Constitutional Court, following the advice of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, according to a statement. Justice Khan previously led the now-dissolved constitutional bench.
Earlier on Thursday, Supreme Court Justices Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah resigned, citing concerns over the 27th Constitutional Amendment. In identical resignation letters to President Zardari, both judges stated they could not uphold their oaths to a Constitution they believe no longer exists. Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, the senior puisne judge, described the amendment as a “grave assault” on Constitution in his 13-page resignation letter, obtained by The News. He argued that it dismantles the Supreme Court, subjects the judiciary to executive control and undermines constitutional democracy, making justice “more distant, fragile and vulnerable to power.” He stated that the amendment fractures the apex court’s unity, cripples judicial independence and regresses the nation by decades. “I am unable to uphold my oath in a court deprived of its constitutional role; resignation is the only honest expression of honouring my oath,” he wrote, adding that continuing would betray his oath for titles or privileges. Under Article 206(1) of the Constitution, he resigned with immediate effect, warning that such constitutional disfigurement is unsustainable and will leave institutional scars. Justice Shah noted that unlike the 26th Amendment, the 27th strips the Supreme Court of its jurisdiction to examine constitutional questions, rendering it a “truncated and diminished court.” He expressed sorrow for judges joining the Federal Constitutional Court, calling it a product of “political expediency” rather than constitutional wisdom and concluded with a verse from Ahmed Faraz’s poem. Justice Athar Minallah, in his resignation letter, recounted his 11-year judicial career, including roles as a judge and Chief Justice of the Islamabad High Court and a Supreme Court judge. He emphasized that his oaths were to the Constitution, not individuals. Prior to the amendment’s passage, he had written to the Chief Justice of Pakistan, expressing concerns about its impact on the constitutional order, but noted that “selective silence and inaction” allowed those fears to materialise. “The Constitution I swore to uphold is no more,” he wrote, stating that pretending otherwise would betray the judiciary’s noble trust. Resigning with immediate effect, he urged future generations to view judicial robes as symbols of truth, not betrayal through silence or complicity. Separately, Supreme Court Justice Salahuddin Panhwar urged Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi to convene a full court meeting to address the 27th Constitutional Amendment’s serious implications for judicial independence. In a letter titled “The Twenty-Seventh Constitutional Amendment and the Independence of the Judiciary,” he warned that the amendment’s changes threaten the judiciary’s foundations, allowing executive and legislative intrusion into judicial domains. “Silence is not caution but abdication,” he wrote, stressing that judicial independence is essential for liberty. He highlighted risks to judges’ tenure, bench composition and the courts’ financial and administrative autonomy, urging a collective judicial response. “When judicial independence is questioned, judges must stand watch together,” he stated, calling for a full court meeting to discharge their duty to the Constitution. Meanwhile, CJP Yahya Afridi convened a full court meeting on Friday (today) to deliberate on the amendment’s implications, following its approval by the Senate on Thursday with 64 votes. Sources confirmed that the CJP acted on requests from judges, including Justices Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah, and former Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) presidents, including Justice (retd) Mushir Alam and Justice (retd) Nadeem Akhtar, who described the amendment as “the biggest threat to the Supreme Court since 1956” and demanded a collective judicial response. No official Supreme Court statement was released. The CJP will host a reception on Friday (today) to honour Justice Aminuddin Khan, who is set to retire on November 30, 2025, and has been appointed Chief Justice of the Federal Constitutional Court under the 27th Amendment. In a related development, former Chief Justice of Pakistan Jawwad S. Khawaja challenged the amendment in the Supreme Court, arguing that it undermines institutional balance, weakens the judiciary and violates the separation of powers doctrine. He contended that parliament cannot amend the Constitution to curtail or abolish the Supreme Court’s constitutional jurisdiction. Similarly, lawyers Asad Rahim and Zeeshan Hashmi filed a petition on Thursday challenging the amendment’s legality. Also, the former Attorney General and Law and Justice Commission member Makhdoom Ali Khan resigned from the commission, citing the amendment’s impact on judicial independence. In his letter to the commission’s chairman, he stated that the amendment “completely undermined judicial independence,” rendering genuine reform impossible. “Without an independent judiciary, legal reform is impossible,” he wrote, expressing regret and resigning immediately, as continuing would be “tantamount to deceiving oneself.” In its reaction, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)-led federal government strongly reacted to the resignations of Justices Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah, labelling their letters “political speeches” and their allegations “unconstitutional.” Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah called the resignations “political and self-serving,” asserting that the judges failed to identify any unconstitutional clause in the amendment and describing their letters as “political documents.” Minister of State for Law and Justice Barrister Aqeel Malik dismissed their claims, stating that parliament’s authority to legislate and amend the Constitution is unquestionable. He argued that the resignations were “unconstitutional in several respects,” with no institutional clash, as the judiciary derives its authority from the Constitution. Malik maintained that the 27th Amendment aims to improve the judicial system and urged that courts not be used for political purposes. Meanwhile, the swearing-in of the judges of Federal Constitutional Court is likely to be held at the Islamabad High Court (IHC) building. According to sources, Chief Justice of the Federal Constitutional Court Aminuddin Khan will administer the oath to the remaining judges after taking oath in the President House. Sources said that arrangements continued till late in the night in the Islamabad High Court building for the swearing-in ceremony of the judges of Federal Constitutional Court. Chief Justice Sarfraz Dogar was also present in the IHC till late in the night. It was reported that the IG Islamabad and Chief Commissioner also reached the Islamabad High Court and went back after meeting the Chief Justice.
