Free judiciary imperative to protect public interest: SC

A four-member bench of the SC, headed by Justice Mahmood Akhtar Shahid Siddiqui heard a plea against the rejection of extension in the service of four additional LHC judges and two additional judges of the Sindh High Court by the Parliamentary Committee (PC). Other member of the bench includes Justice Jawwad S Khawaja, Justice Khilji Arif Hussain and Justice Tariq Parvez.During the proceeding, Justice Jawwad S Khawaja remarked that the civil society has protested against the procedure of judges’ appointment which showed that it was a matter of public interest. He said that bar councils had passed the resolutions against the procedure of judges’ appointment. Justice Khilji Arif Hussain said that the court would decide that the issue of judges’ appointment was a matter of public interest or not. At the last hearing, the court had asked Attorney General Anwarul Haq to represent the government and to also place on record the grounds on which the PC had rejected the extension.The petition was filed by LHC judges Justice Muhammad Yawar Ali, Justice Syed Mazahir Ali Akbar Naqvi, Justice Mahmood Rashid Sheikh and Justice Muhammad Farrukh Irfan Khan and Justice Muhammad Tasneem Aslam and Justice Salman Hamid of SHC.