Ex-CJP Jillani receives prestigious 2025 Bolch Prize

ISLAMABAD: Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, Pakistan’s 21st chief justice, received the 2025 Bolch Prize for the Rule of Law by Duke Law School’s Bolch Judicial Institute for his outstanding contributions to judicial independence, religious freedom, and gender equality in South Asia and beyond.

Receiving the honour at Duke University, Jillani expressed deep gratitude, calling the award a symbol of shared values — democracy, freedom, dignity, and the rule of law — which he said are under threat globally.

“I feel humbled because the Carl and Susan Bolch Prize for the rule of law sets a tall moral standard to recognise the lifetime achievement of an individual or series of acts of an individual or an organisation creating, promoting or preserving the importance of the rule of law, nationally and internationally,” he added.

Highlighting rising religious intolerance and extremism, he pointed to conflicts in Nigeria, India, and elsewhere, emphasising that no faith condones violence and all uphold the principle of mutual respect. Jillani recalled his landmark suo motu judgment in response to the 2013 Peshawar church bombing and threats to the Kailash tribe. The ruling affirmed that religious freedom is multidimensional and constitutionally protected, extending to belief, expression, and practice.

He said, at that time, he directed the state to establish a task force for religious tolerance, revise curricula, eliminate hate speech, and protect minority worship places — initiatives he said were essential for a functional democracy.