Countdown is on for naming new chief justice of Pakistan

• New law has changed the appointment procedure.
• The govt has to finalise name before Oct 22, 12am.
• President signs constitutional amendment into law.
  

The coalition government has a little over 30 hours to appoint a new Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) after the enactment of the 26th Constitutional Amendment, which mandates the top judicial slot be filled three days before the incumbent's retirement.

With CJP Qazi Faez Isa's retirement scheduled for October 25, 2024, the new appointment must be finalised by October 22 at 12am, as per the new law.

The 26th Constitutional Amendment sets the CJP’s term at three years or until they reach the retirement age of 65. President Asif Ali Zardari has signed the bill into law upon the advice of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in the wee hours of Monday.

After the 26th amendment, the selection of the chief justice will no longer be based solely on seniority, and instead, the choice will be made among the three most senior judges of the Supreme Court.

A 12-member parliamentary committee will decide on the chief justice’s nomination with a two-thirds majority. The committee will then forward the selected name to the prime minister, who will send the nomination to the president for final approval.

If any of the three senior judges declines the position, the next senior judge will be considered. Currently, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah is the most senior judge, followed by Justice Munib Akhtar, and Justice Yahya Afridi.

A report published in The News last week suggested that Justice Afridi would likely be appointed the next chief justice of Pakistan, as well-placed sources in the government and its allies are likely to support his appointment.

"It is noteworthy that in recent times, when the apex court judges have been badly divided, Justice Afridi has remained non-controversial and neutral," the report added.

Brief overview of three SC judges 

Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, senior puisne judge, is the senior-most judge on the seniority list who can be named as the next chief justice of Pakistan (CJP) after Qazi Faez Isa's retirement on October 25 as the top judge.

After serving as the Lahore High Court (LHC) chief justice for almost two years, Justice Shah was elevated to the SC in early 2018.

Born in 1963, Justice Munib Akhtar, was elevated to the Supreme Court in 2018 and he is the second senior-most judge on the seniority list to be selected for the post of the chief justice.

As per the seniority list, Justice Yahya Afridi is the third senior-most judge and he served as the Peshawar High Court's (PHC) chief justice from December 30, 2016, until his elevation to the SC in 2018.