IHC asks federal govt to explain delay in judges’ appointments summary

• Justice Tahir questions status of pending summary.
• President cannot reject summary now, court told.
• SHC, PHC judges’ confirmations also remain stalled: IHC.

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday issued notices to the president and the prime minister through their respective secretaries in a case concerning a pending summary for the appointment of judges to the high courts, while questioning the delay in completing the constitutional process.

Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir issued the notices during the hearing of a writ petition challenging the president’s failure to approve the summary and sought responses by Wednesday.

Addressing Additional Attorney General Rashid Hafeez, the judge questioned the federal government’s handling of the matter and asked about the status of the summary concerning judicial appointments.

“It appears the federal government has little interest in the matter. We thought the federal government would fulfil its responsibility, but that has not happened,” Justice Tahir remarked.

The judge also asked whether the government was aware of the stage at which the summary was currently pending and questioned what was happening with appointments to the superior judiciary.

Justice Tahir observed that confirmations of judges of the Sindh High Court (SHC) and Peshawar High Court (PHC) approved by the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) had also stalled.

The judge remarked that more than 18 days had now passed since the summary was forwarded.

During the hearing, the petitioner’s counsel Zahid Asif Chaudhry argued that the Constitution was clear regarding the consequences once the prescribed period had elapsed and maintained that the president could not keep the summary pending indefinitely.

Additional Attorney General Rashid Hafeez, however, submitted that the president could no longer reject the summary at this stage.

The proceedings stem from a writ petition filed by advocate Luqman Zafar in the public interest, arguing that the JCP had nominated and forwarded names for appointment as high court judges during its meetings held on July 20 and 21, 2026.

According to the petition, the nominations were transmitted to the president through the prime minister under Article 175A(8) of the Constitution, but no decision has been taken despite the passage of considerable time.

The counsel further submitted that the Constitution allows the president to return advice for reconsideration within 15 days, but contended that the constitutional period had expired without the advice being acted upon or returned.

In a three-page written order issued after Monday’s hearing, the court had sought reports from the federal government and the Ministry of Law and directed them to explain the status of the summary.

The order directed the deputy attorney general to ensure that the federal government and the law ministry submit short written reports specifying the date on which the prime minister forwarded the summary to the president and whether any action was taken thereafter.

Justice Tahir had also directed the respondents to explain the constitutional consequences if advice relating to judges’ appointments remains pending indefinitely without being acted upon or returned within the period prescribed by the Constitution.

The case will be taken up again on Wednesday.