ISLAMABAD: Justice (retd) Mushir Alam has refused to accept the nomination for his appointment as an ad hoc judge of the Supreme Court.
“After careful consideration under the present circumstances, it is with a heavy heart that I regret to inform you that I cannot accept this esteemed appointment,” Justice (retd) Alam’s letter to Chief Justice and Judicial Commission Chairman Justice Qazi said. Faez Isa.
The former judge’s refusal to accept the said post comes that CJP Isa nominated him along with Justice (retd) Maqbool Baqir (retd) Mazhar Alam Miankhel and Justice (retd) Sardar Tariq Masood for appointment as ad hoc judges due to growing backlog cases.
A retired judge can be appointed as an ad hoc judge within three years or sooner, and four former SC judges have been proposed to be appointed as ad hoc judges for a three-year term.
The session of the Judicial Commission will be held on July 19 at 15:00 in the meeting room of the Supreme Court.
The appointment of ad hoc judges is intended to ensure that more cases are decided than initiated and to reduce and hopefully eliminate cases that have been pending for several years, the oversight committee’s notice said.
According to statistics presented in the Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan’s half-yearly report, the backlog of cases in courts rose to 2.26 million during the second half of 2023, increasing the total pending case by 3.9%.
The report revealed that 82% of the pending cases (1.86 million) were at the district judiciary level and the remaining 18% (0.39 million cases) were at the higher level, including SC, Federal Shariat Court and High Courts.
According to the report, 2.38 million new cases were filed during the period, with courts able to decide 2.30 million cases.
In his letter to the CJP, Justice (retd) Alam said that after he was dismissed as a judge of the Sindh High Court, he founded the Vision Trust and established an eye hospital in Karachi for the visually impaired and “planned to continue his unfulfilled mission. give back to society”.
He further highlighted that he has registered “Vision Health Care Foundation” to establish a “Comprehensive Disability Management Center” for which he has also acquired 15 acres of land.
“Thank you once again for considering me for appointment as an adhoc judge of the Supreme Court. I wish the court and your office all the best in your future work,” said the judge.
While Justice (retd) Alam refused to accept his appointment as an ad hoc judge, sources say Justice (retd) Masood and Justice (retd) Miankhel agreed to their appointment to the apex court.
Meanwhile, Justice (retd) Baqir is yet to submit his reply, sources added.
