Judges’ transfer to IHC was a fraud, LHCBA tells SC

ISLAMABAD: The Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA) Monday submitted before the constitutional bench its response in the case regarding the transfer of three judges from other high courts to the Islamabad High Court (IHC) and formation of a new seniority list.

Being one of the petitioners, the LHCBA submitted that the documents clearly showed that the process of transferring judges from other high courts to the IHC was tantamount to a fraud with the Constitution, and the notification for it should be declared null and void.

It was submitted that the names of the judges for transfer appeared in a summary by the law secretary, which stated that there were no judges available from interior Sindh for the IHC. The LHCBA, however, pointed out that there were seven judges senior to Justice Khadim Soomro from interior Sindh, whose names were available.

The response further stated that the summary of transfers did not mention public interest anywhere, adding that as per rules, the federal law secretary could only send the summary for transfers upon the instruction of the chief justice.

Instead of transferring the three sitting judges to the IHC, new judges from interior Sindh and Balochistan could have been appointed, the reply submitted, adding that the transfer of one judge from the Balochistan High Court had also prevented the appointment of several eligible lawyers as judges.

According to the record, these summaries were sent without any consultation with constitutional officeholders, the LHCBA submitted. A five-member constitutional bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, will resume hearing into the identical petitions, filed by six IHC judges against transfer of judges as well as seniority issue of the judges, on Tuesday. Apart from six IHC judges, Lahore High Court Bar Association and Lahore Bar Association had also challenged in the SC transfer of judges to the IHC.