Islamabad – The Chief Justice of Pakistan, Yahya Afridi, has restructured various committees within the Supreme Court following the induction of new judges. The announcement was made on Monday through an official directive aimed at redistributing responsibilities among the judiciary’s top officials.
Chief Justice Afridi has reorganized the six-member ‘Case Management Committee,’ which he will chair. The committee includes Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan, Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan, Justice Muhammad Shafi Siddiqui, and the Additional Registrar (Judicial), with the IT Director serving as the committee’s secretary. This committee’s primary objective is to enhance the efficiency of judicial operations.
In a bid to oversee the functioning of special courts, specifically the anti-terrorism courts (ATCs) across Pakistan, Chief Justice Afridi has assigned responsibilities to five Supreme Court judges. Justice Musarrat Hilali will oversee the ATCs in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while Justice Malik Shahzad Ahmad Khan, Justice Hashim Khan Kakar, and Justice Salahuddin Panhwar will manage those in Punjab, Balochistan, and Sindh, respectively. Justice Aamer Farooq will be responsible for the special courts in Islamabad.
Furthermore, Chief Justice Afridi has set up a committee to supervise model courts, comprising Justice Malik Shahzad Ahmad, Justice Hashim Kakar, Justice Salahuddin Panhwar, and Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim. In addition, the Supreme Court’s IT Affairs Committee has been restructured, with Chief Justice Afridi as the chairman, and Justices Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Mian Gul Hassan Aurangzeb as members.
The Chief Justice also issued a directive regarding appeals and miscellaneous applications, stating that these will be presented before him and other judges according to the Supreme Court Rules of 1980. Appeals against the registrar’s orders will also be brought before the Chief Justice, who will delegate them to one of the five senior judges.
Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim has been appointed to oversee security affairs for the Supreme Court and former judges. Meanwhile, the Archives Committee of the Supreme Court has been reorganized, with Justice Hassan Azhar Rizvi leading the committee, and Justices Salahuddin Panhwar and Mian Gul Hassan serving as members. Yaqoob Bangash will act as the committee’s curator.
These changes aim to streamline and improve the effectiveness of the Supreme Court’s proceedings.
