Senior IHC Judges & Lawyers Boycott Justice Dogar’s Oath Ceremony

• President Asif Ali Zardari took the oath of Justice Dogar as the new Chief Justice of Islamabad High Court.
• The senior IHC judges and the Islamabad lawyer bodies rejected Dogar’s appointment and did not attend his oath-taking ceremony.

Seniority clashes result in the boycott of senior judges:

The IHC Judges boycotted the transfer of the different high court judges to the Supreme Court, especially the transfer of Justice Dogar from the Lahore High Court to the Islamabad High Court and his appointment as the new Chief Justice of the IHC. Earlier, it was just speculated that Dogar would be appointed as the new Chief Justice of the IHC. Upon confirmation of the news, the senior judges from the IHC sent their representation to the concerned authorities, like the Chief Justice of Pakistan and the current Chief Justice of the IHC.

These Judges showed their concerns upon the transfer and sought to halt these judges’ transfer. However, the Apex Court reviewed the petition and declared it null and void. The Supreme Court did not stop the transfer of these judges as the transfer is in alignment with the 26th Constitutional Amendment.

Despite the boycott of these Judges, the oath-taking ceremony of Justice Sardar Mohammad Sarfraz Dogar took place on Friday. President Asif Ali Zardari attended the ceremony and was honored to take Dogar’s oath. All the respectable Judges of the IHC were invited to this oath-taking ceremony. However, the five Judges who earlier showed their dissent on the transfer of these judges did not attend the ceremony.

Also Read: Justice Dogar Named Acting CJ Amid Seniority Debate

Justices who boycotted the ceremony are Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, Babar Sattar, Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan and Saman Rafat Imtiaz. These Judges did not attend the oath-taking ceremony. 

Justice Kiyani, the puisne Judge of the Islamabad High Court, attended the oath-taking ceremony of the new Judges on the same day. Although the oath-taking ceremony of the new Chief Justice and the judges of the Islamabad High Court were held in the same place, the Judge’s ceremony was a few blocks away from the Presidency.

Justice Kiyani was asked about his presence in the oath-taking ceremony of the new Chief Justice Justice Dogar at the Presidency. Upon this question, Justice answered that “he is very comfortable sitting here.” It clearly reflected that he was highly uninterested in attending Dogar’s oath-taking ceremony.

Kiyani’s dissent in attending the ceremony:

Justice Kiyani is known as the most respectable and one of the most senior judges of the Islamabad High Court. He is ranked 2nd after Justice Ammar Farooq in the IHC. After the elevation of Chief Justice IHC Justice Ammar Farooq, Justice Kiyani’s chances of becoming a new Chief Justice of IHC were high. 

Despite being the 2nd ranked Judge in the Seniority List of the IHC judges, Justice Kiyani could not become the acting Chief Justice of the IHC. The only reason for not becoming a new IHC Chief Justice is the transfer of the senior judges of the different high courts to the IHC. 

According to law, the new Chief Justice can only be appointed by the President, with the consent of the relevant High Court Chief Justices and the consent of the concerned member. 

Kiyani raised an issue, asking how a judge from the other high court could be ranked in the top position of the other high courts. He was pointing fingers at Dogar’s transfer, who had been appointed as the new Chief Justice of IHC and transferred from the Lahore High Court. 

He said these Judges should take the oath as new judges and that their ranking should not be the same as before. However, the on-duty Chief Justice dismissed the representation. Due to Dogar’s transfer to IHC and his appointment as the new IHC Chief Justice, Kiyani ranked third in the seniority list. Moreover, he also lost his position in the Court’s Departmental Promotion Committee and the Administration Committee. He was also removed as the inspection judge of the Special Courts.

Lawyers warn of protest:

The Islamabad High Court Lawyer bodies also rejected the appointment of the new Chief Justice of the IHC. However, they warned the government that if it did not stop the procedure of appointing its likely judges to the IHC, they would protest the appointment of these hand-picked judges. 

The Islamabad High Court Bar Association, Islamabad Bar Council, and District Bar Association Islamabad called these appointments an assault on the fair and independent judiciary.

Justice Jahangiri attended the IHCBA event and described the importance of hard work and merit-based success in the legal profession. He also claimed that he never begged or ran for a high rank or position in the Court. 

He told his struggle story and how he achieved his position through hard work, consistency, and professionalism. He advised the youth that they could also be successful only through hard work and legal intelligence. He also said that young lawyers should read the cases thoroughly so they have adequate information and evidence to speak confidently in Court.

Islamabad Bar Council Member Raja Aleem Abbasi also spoke at the event and showed his strong opposition to the appointment of the new CJ of IHC. He said the IHC judges are saying the right thing. The appointment of these judges is just manipulation and is meant to ease the culprits. The lawyers warned the government and said that these appointments and the transfer of these judges were to stop Kiyani from being the new CJ of IHC. They, however, threatened the government with a protest.