Fact-check: Claim that Islamabad High Court exceeds constitutional limit of 12 judges is false

On February 1, when the government transferred three sitting judges from their respective high courts to the Islamabad High Court (IHC), a claim began circulating on social media that after the transfers, the number of judges had increased to 13 — surpassing the constitutionally mandated limit of 12 judges.

This raised questions about whether the government had overstepped constitutional boundaries.

The claim is false.

Claim

A user on X (formerly Twitter) posted an image with the caption: "According to the constitution, the Islamabad High Court has a limit of 12 judges, while the government has appointed 13 judges."

The image featured a list of the alleged 13 judges. The post has been viewed over 9,000 times, reposted more than 340 times, and liked over 770 times to date.

On February 2, another account on X shared a similar claim with the caption: "The constitution is in the dustbin."

Fact

The claim is false. The law allows the Islamabad High Court to have 13 judges at one time, not 12.

Allah Rakhi, the public relations officer for the federal minister for law and justice, shared a copy of the Islamabad High Court Act, the law that governs the court's operations.

The law was amended by parliament on November 4, 2024, increasing the number of judges from 10 to 13, including the chief justice.

Now, Section 3 of the law states that the Islamabad High Court shall consist of a chief justice and twelve other judges, to be appointed from the provinces and other territories of Pakistan in accordance with the constitution.

Prior to the amendment, the 2010 law allowed the high court to have seven judges, including the chief justice, which was later increased to 10 in 2020. This was further amended in 2024 to extend the total number of judges to 13.

Verdict: The claim that the Islamabad High Court has a constitutional limit of 12 judges is false. Following the amendment to the Islamabad High Court law in 2024, the number of judges, including the chief justice, was increased from 10 to 13.

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