Sharjeel defends parliament’s role in judicial appointments

Sindh Senior Minister for Information, Transport, and Excise & Taxation Sharjeel Inam Memon on Thursday praised the 26th Constitutional Amendment stating that it preserved the role of Parliament that was responsible for creating the Constitution and laws.

He was addressing a press conference at the Directorate of Electronic and Social Media in Karachi.

The 26th Constitutional Amendment had resulted in a shift in the judicial appointment system from the past, he said, adding that decisions made by controversial chief justices of the past such as Iftikhar Chaudhary and Saqib Nisar should be set aside.

Memon was of the view that Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari united all the political parties to pass the constitutional amendment in line with the vision of his late mother Benazir Bhutto.

Even though the government and its allies had sufficient numbers, Bilawal still brought all the parties together to secure approval for the amendment, the information minister said, adding that now, the judicial process would be faster and more efficient as cases would be handled promptly and the provinces would receive their rightful representation in the judiciary.

He stated that Pakistan had produced judges of international repute in the past, but unfortunately, the judicial environment deteriorated after Chaudhry’s era.

Judges anywhere in the world neither appointed nor removed other judges, Memon said, adding that in societies with a legal system like Pakistan's, the government was involved in the selection of judges.

He explained that it was not new that Parliament had reclaimed its power to participate in the judicial appointment process. In countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, India, the United States and South Africa, judges were appointed by the government on the judiciary’s advice.

He said that the 18th Amendment aimed to restore Parliament's authority to make appointments through parliamentary committees. However, Parliament was compelled to introduce the 19th Amendment due to Chaudhry's influence. The Supreme Court never ensured equal representation of the provinces, and the provinces had raised concerns about it, the information minister maintained.

He stated that former Sindh High Court chief justice Ahmed Ali Sheikh was bypassed and appointed as a junior judge.

“We have no objection to any judge; we respect everyone and want people to receive justice. In Justice Ahmed Ali Sheikh's case, junior judges were promoted to the Supreme Court over him,” Memon said.

He announced that from today (November 1), the Sindh government would strictly prohibit private vehicles from using licence plates and emergency lights designated for official forces, installing tinted glass or displaying weapons while in plain clothes.