FCC upholds SC's verdict on judges' transfer, rejects IHC judges' appeals

Islamabad (Web Desk): The Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) on Monday upheld the Supreme Court's June verdict regarding the transfer of judges, rejecting intra-court appeals (ICAs) filed by five Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges. The court also dismissed the judges' request to transfer their appeal back to the Supreme Court due to non-compliance, as none of the petitioners appeared before the bench.

The appeals were filed by IHC judges Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani, Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, Justice Babar Sattar, Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan, and Justice Saman Riffat Imtiaz, challenging the transfer of several judges to the IHC from other high courts. The five IHC judges argued that the case should have been heard by the Supreme Court, not the FCC.

The case, which concerns the transfer of Justice Sarfraz Dogar from the Lahore High Court, Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro from the Sindh High Court, and Justice Muhammad Asif from the Balochistan High Court to the IHC, was heard by a six-member larger bench of the FCC led by Chief Justice Aminuddin Khan.

The IHC judges had previously challenged the Supreme Court's decision, claiming that the move was unconstitutional. In their appeal, they contended that the FCC did not have jurisdiction over the matter, as the appeal had been filed under the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act, 2023, which was not covered under Articles 175E or 175F of the Constitution. They requested that the appeal be returned to the Supreme Court for hearing.

The case was transferred to the FCC after the 27th Constitutional Amendment, which added provisions for the transfer of certain appeals to the FCC. The judges, however, argued that the amendment was unlawfully applied in their case and that the transfer to the FCC lacked legal authority.

In its ruling, the FCC rejected their request, upholding the Supreme Court's June verdict on the issue of judicial transfers. The five IHC judges had also sought interim relief, requesting that the Constitutional Bench's order be "recalled and set-aside" in the interest of justice. However, the FCC did not grant this request.

This decision marks a significant development in the ongoing legal battle over the judicial transfers and the constitutional amendments that have reshaped the jurisdiction of Pakistan's courts.