PHC upholds two-year practice criteria for civil judge post

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Wednesday upheld the provincial government decision about two years experience as a high court lawyer to apply for a civil judge/judicial magistrate post and dismissed writ petitions filed against it.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan and Justice Irshad Qaiser dismissed the writ petitions filed against the provincial government decision.  Four candidates for the posts including Waheedullah, Kamran, Abdul Nasir and Muhammad Shakil had filed the petitions.

The petitioners’ lawyer submitted that that through an advertisement issued on October 22, 2015 the KP Public Service Commission invited applications for 120 vacant positions of Civil Judge/Judicial Magistrate/Alaqa Qazi with different eligibility criteria.

After the Supreme Court’s decision setting aside the PHC decision on appointments of the judges of sub-ordinate judiciary by the high court, the commission re-advertised the civil judges/judicial magistrate posts with certain conditions.  They argued the commission set two years experience of practice at the high court for the lawyers who wanted to apply for the posts.  As per the first advertisement, they said, the petitioner were declared eligible for the post, but became ineligible in the fresh advertisement as he had not completed his two years experience as high court lawyers. The petitioners claimed the provincial government’s condition of two years experience as high court lawyer was against the decision of the Supreme Court.

He said the apex court had stated in the decision that the high court would decide to set two years experience. The petitioners questioned whether applicants who have already applied for the post of civil judges advertised by the high court should apply afresh to the commission. They stated that the provincial government’s notification issued on August 26, 2015 had given birth to a complex situation, besides direct impact upon a particular class of law graduates of KP and Fata, by depriving them to appear in the forth coming examination for recruitment of 120 Civil Judges/Judicial Magistrate/Alaqa Qazi.

However, the law officer submitted that the provincial government had issued the notification after the consent of the high court and thus no unlawful act was don on part of the provincial government and Public Service Commission.