The Judicial Commission of Pakistan has finalised the draft rules concerning the appointment of judges during its recent meeting, sources said on Friday. The new draft would be presented to the members in the next meeting on September 28.

“It was ensured that the draft rules should be fully compliant with the provisions of the Constitution,” said the press release issued by the JCP registrar on Friday.

Proposals were made upon which a consensus was developed. Participants of the meeting suggested making necessary amendments and increasing the number of proformas to attend to the different categories.

It was decided to attend to the same by modifying the draft rules. After the conclusion of the discussion the members proposed that Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa and senior puisne judge Justice Mansoor Ali Shah should amend the said draft rules in accordance with the consensus that had been arrived at and to present the same in the next meeting of the commission.

According to sources, the new draft under consideration would allow for three names to be reviewed for the appointment of judges to the SC. For high court judge nominations, the relevant chief justice, a senior judge, and a member of the provincial bar council would be involved. Similarly, three names would also be evaluated for the appointment of the high court chief justice.

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During the meeting, Justice Muneeb Akhtar proposed to postpone the session until the matter of constitutional amendments is finalised. He inquired with Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Awan about the proposed constitutional amendment that was mentioned in the last meeting. In response, the AGP stated that the Judicial Commission “does not have the authority to ask such questions.” Following this response, Justice Akhtar left the meeting.

Notably, Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar did not attend the meeting and the AGP left for an “important” meeting during the session.

The next meeting of the commission is scheduled for September 28, 2024 at 10am.