Islamabad (Web Desk): The Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) on Tuesday gave unanimous approval for appointing permanent chief justices to the Sindh High Court (SHC) and Balochistan High Court (BHC).
The decision came during the commission’s first sitting after the 27th Constitutional Amendment and the launch of the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC).
Presided over by Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi at the Supreme Court, the meeting endorsed SHC Acting Chief Justice Zafar Ahmed Rajput and BHC Acting Chief Justice Muhammad Kamran Khan Mulakhail for permanent elevation to lead their respective high courts.
The commission also supported the promotion of Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb—an Islamabad High Court judge currently serving as an acting Supreme Court judge—to a permanent slot on the Supreme Court, a move approved by a majority vote.
By another majority decision, the JCP established a committee tasked with framing draft rules under clause (20) of Article 175A of the Constitution.
The committee includes FCC’s Justice Aamer Farooq, Attorney-General Mansoor Usman Awan, Senator Farooq Hamid Naek, Senator Syed Ali Zafar, and senior lawyer Muhammad Ahsan Bhoon.
Profiles of new HC CJs
Justice Zafar Ahmed Rajput, born on October 16, 1965, completed his LLB from Government Jinnah Law College in Hyderabad and later earned a Master’s degree in International Relations from the University of Sindh.
He began his legal career in 1990 as an advocate with the Sindh Bar Council and became qualified to practice before the High Court in 2001. After three years in practice, he joined the judiciary as a magistrate in 1993 and was promoted to Senior Civil Judge and Assistant Sessions Judge in 2000. His elevation to the SHC came on August 31, 2013, after which he served at the court’s principal Karachi seat as well as benches in Sukkur, Hyderabad, and Larkana. He has disposed of more than 12,000 cases over the course of his judicial service and took oath as acting chief justice of the SHC on September 15, 2023.
Justice Muhammad Kamran Khan Mulakhail, born on January 19, 1968, in Quetta, received his law degree from University Law College, Quetta, in 1994. He represented the Balochistan Bar Council during the Judicial Commission’s maiden session and took part in the early discussions that led to the drafting of the commission’s rules. He was appointed an additional judge of the BHC on August 30, 2013, and confirmed as a permanent judge on September 2, 2015.