ISLAMABAD: Two Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges — Justice Babar Sattar and Justice Sardar Ejaz — penned a letter to Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar, expressing concerns over judicial anomalies.
IHC Chief Justice Dogar chaired a full court meeting attended by all judges of the high court. The meeting’s agenda included service rules, practice and procedure rules, powers of family judges, and issues related to the high court building’s construction.
Ahead of the meeting, the two IHC judges sought additional points to be included in the meeting’s agenda, while highlighting concerns over case allocation, administrative decisions, and transparency within the court.
The four-page letter by Justice Sattar, a copy of which is available to Geo.tv, questions whether the judges of the IHC today believe that they were fulfilling their constitutional responsibilities and whether citizens consider them protectors of fundamental rights.
“Has the IHC made efforts to establish the district judiciary as an independent institution? There is a lack of transparency in preparing rosters and fixing cases. We tell officers daily in our decisions that they are neither kings nor are their powers without limits,” the letter reads.
The judges express concern that senior judges are being ignored while additional judges are assigned cases. “In exercising administrative powers, should judges and the chief justice not remember that they are not kings but public officials?” he asks.
The letter also criticises the refusal of the office to issue cause lists in some cases, noting that this is affecting the independence of the judiciary.
Highlighting instances where rosters have deprived him and other judges of single benches and observes that senior judges have been excluded from the administrative committee in violation of rules, while additional and transfer judges have been included.
Another concern raised is the mandatory requirement for judges to obtain no-objection certificates (NOCs) for travelling abroad.
“It takes decades to build institutions, but it takes no time to destroy them,” the letter stated.
Meanwhile, the letter written by Justice Ejaz surfaced just hours ahead of the IHC full court meeting. In the letter, Justice Ejaz urged that additional points be added to the agenda of the meeting.
He noted that the Gazette notification of the Practice and Procedure Rules had already been issued, but rules were circulated to judges for their feedback only a day and a half before the meeting. He wrote that judges should have been given a presentation regarding the adoption of Lahore High Court rules.
Justice Ejaz expressed concern that it appeared the full court meeting had been convened merely as a formality. “In this situation, I will not be able to give meaningful feedback regarding the Practice and Procedure Rules,” the letter stated.
The judge also questioned why the Gazette notification of the Practice and Procedure Rules had been issued without the approval of the full court. He stressed that all steps taken under the rules without such approval could be considered unlawful.
Raising further issues, Justice Ejaz said that the exclusion of the most senior judges from the administrative committee should also be included in the agenda. He called for discussion on the practice of requiring judges to obtain no-objection certificates (NOCs) before travelling abroad.
“The law does not permit barring judges from travelling abroad without an NOC from the Chief Justice,” the letter read. “Will it now be up to the Chief Justice to decide whether a judge spends his holidays in Pakistan or abroad?” He described the NOC requirement as a serious violation of the fundamental right of judges to travel.
The letter also recommended that the agenda should cover the transfer of cases to different benches by the Chief Justice as master of the roster, as well as orders passed regarding the constitution of benches.
Copies of these letters have been circulated to all judges of the IHC and the registrar, ensuring that the issues will be addressed during the full court meeting chaired by Chief Justice Dogar.
