The Senate Standing Committee on Law and Justice approved on Friday a bill to raise the number of judges from 17 to 25 amid opposition from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl.

PPP Senator Farooq Hamid Naek presided over the committee meeting as Senator Abdul Qadir presented the bill. Senator Qadir stressed the need for this increase, citing the rising population and crime rates in the country.

He noted that cases can often extend across two generations while the number of judges has remained the same since the 1990s, even as the caseload in the higher judiciary has surged.

JUI-F Senator Kamran Murtaza highlighted that there are vacant positions for judges in the high courts. He pointed out that prior to October 25, the Supreme Court was experiencing delays in handling cases, with “over 30 cases being heard daily.”

Sunni Ittehad Council Senator Hamid Khan stated that India, a country six times larger than Pakistan, has only 34 judges in its Supreme Court.

He attributed delays in case resolutions to “internal disputes” among apex court judges, arguing that “there is no need to increase” the number of judges in the SC.

Khan suggested that inquiries should be made directly to the Supreme Court regarding this matter.

PML-N’s Anusha Rahman raised concerns about utility bills, stating that members of Parliament pay their own utility bills while the government covers the bills for judges of the higher judiciary. She questioned why judges who had resigned were still receiving pensions.

Senator Khan was of the view that the 26th Constitutional Amendment has “harmed” the judiciary, claiming that governments tend to increase the number of judges to “exert control over the judiciary, which he considers detrimental.”

JUI-F’s Murtaza alleged that divisions have formed within the SC, claiming that the government aims to shift the balance of power from the majority to the minority.

But Qadir denied what Murtaza, who is a lawyer also, said. “The Supreme Court is currently united, with no factions within it.”

Following this, the Senate panel approved a bill to increase the number of judges in the apex court. The committee chairman announced that the new structure would include one chief justice of Pakistan and 24 additional judges.

But PTI and JUI-F senators expressed their opposition to the proposed increase in judges, highlighting concerns over the implications of such a change.

Prior to this, the ruling coalition had already introduced a bill in the National Assembly to increase the number of judges in the Supreme Court. Member of the National Assembly Barrister Daniyal presented the bill on a private members’ day.