ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary committee formed under the 26th constitutional amendment on Tuesday picked Justice Yahya Afridi as the next chief justice of Pakistan.
At its maiden session to select the chief justice from among the three senior-most judges of the apex court, the list sent by the outgoing CJP was presented. However, members belonging to the PTI did not attend the meeting. The members after deliberation at its meeting at Parliament House picked the name of Justice Afridi.
Justice Afridi, 59, from Kohat in Khyber Pakthunkhwa was third on the list of senior-most judges of the apex court.
Before the 26th constitutional amendment, the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court automatically became its chief upon the retirement of the incumbent. Had there been no changes to the law, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah would have become the CJP.
The committee will now send the name to the Prime Minister who will advise the President for final appointment of the chief justice.
The committee should select a name for the post three days before the retirement of the outgoing CJP. Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa is retiring on October 25.
The committee consisted of PML-N’s Khawaja Asif, Ahsan Iqbal, Shaista Pervaiz Malik and Senator Azam Nazeer Tarar; PPP’s Raja Pervez Ashraf, Naveed Qamar and Senator Farooq H. Naek; Sunni Ittehad Council’s Hamid Raza; PTI-affiliated MNA Gohar Khan and Senator Ali Zafar; Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan MNA Rana Ansar; and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl’s Senator Kamran Murtaza.