ISLAMABAD
The Islamabad District Bar Association (IDBA) has moved the Islamabad High Court (IHC) with an application seeking to be impleaded as a party in the case challenging the appointment of Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, whose LLB degree was recently cancelled by Karachi University.
Filed through its President Chaudhary Naeem Ali Gujjar, the IDBA argued that it is the “primary stakeholder” in all matters related to the independence of the judiciary and the supremacy of the Constitution. The bar maintained that a “fair and transparent adjudication” of the pending writ petition is impossible without its participation, as the issues raised are of “fundamental importance” to the legal fraternity and the rule of law.
The plea emphasized the bar’s commitment to “shielding the superior judiciary from attacks, whether internal or external, and in striving for the supremacy of the Constitution.” The association formally requested the court to be impleaded as a respondent in the petition filed by Advocate Mian Dawood.
This development follows a significant ruling by the Supreme Court (SC). On Tuesday, the SC’s constitutional bench, led by Justice Aminuddin Khan, set aside the IHC’s interim order that had restricted Justice Jahangiri from performing judicial duties following the cancellation of his degree. The five-judge bench ruled that judges cannot be restrained from judicial functions through an interim order, a principle established in the 1988 Malik Asad Ali case.
Before the bench, Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan conceded that the restraining order was indefensible in law, and original petitioner Advocate Mian Dawood also admitted he could not support the order after reviewing legal precedent. Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail remarked that a judge can only be removed by the President upon the recommendation of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) under Article 209 of the Constitution.
Meanwhile, the Sindh High Court is separately hearing Justice Jahangiri’s petition challenging Karachi University’s cancellation of his degree, having issued notices to the Cabinet Division, Karachi University, and other relevant law officers for a hearing scheduled for tomorrow (October 3).
