A bill to increase the number of judges in the Supreme Court was presented in the Senate on Monday and the august house’s chairman has referred the bill to the relevant committee.
“A significant number of constitutional cases are being filed in the Supreme Court,” Balochistan’s independent senator Mohammad Abdul Qadir said while presenting the motion in the House. “Larger benches are often formed for these cases, which can overshadow critical issues faced by taxpayers.”
Earlier this month, Aaj News reported that the federal government is considering increasing the number of judges in the Supreme Court, and in this regard, a government member has prepared a private member’s bill.
Last month, Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa administered the oath to former justices Sardar Tariq Masood and Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel as ad hoc judges of the Supreme Court.
The addition brought the total strength of judges at the apex court from 17 to 19.
Patel added that there were over 53,000 pending cases in the top court, with some cases taking two years to be heard. “The number of judges should be increased by 16, as there is a growing influx of constitutional matters requiring attention from larger benches,” he said.
The PPP senator was of the view that the country was burdened with thousands of billions in debt and with the “population steadily increasing it is essential to approve the bill to expedite the resolution of cases.”
The opposition protested against the bill, chanting “No… No…” slogans in the assembly.
In response to the motion, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar highlighted the pressing realities of the judicial system, stating that death penalty cases remain pending and that life imprisonment cannot exceed 25 years.
He noted that one individual has spent 34 years in jail due to delays in appeals, with death penalty appeals pending since 2015.
Tarar pointed out that the Peshawar High Court has requested an addition of 10 judges and since the PTI was in power there, those judges were being allocated. He suggested sending the bill to the committee for further review.
PTI Senator Ali Zafar expressed concerns that the proposal to suddenly increase the number of judges appears to be an “attempt at judicial martial law.”
He stated that while they were open to increasing the number of judges by two, if additional judges were necessary, it should first be considered for the lower judiciary.
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Senator Saifullah Abro stated that since the Supreme Court’s decision regarding the allocation of reserved seats to the PTI, there has been an ongoing discussion about increasing the number of judges.
ANP lawmaker Aimal Wali was of the view that when decisions “are made elsewhere, it leads to such situations.” He claimed that the lower house of Parliament was being used for bringing reforms to the judiciary. He noted that media reports are circulating “about who needs the additional judges.”
Subsequently, the Senate chairman sent the bill to the relevant committee for further consideration.
The Senate has rejected the Constitutional Amendment Bill 2024, presented by Senator Fozia Arshad during a session. Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar opposed the bill, stating: “No legislation can contradict the Quran and Sunnah.”
Tarar emphasized that fundamental rights were guaranteed in the Constitution, which includes the right to participate in politics.
He pointed out that some politicians were being kept away from politics by imposing a requirement that candidates must be graduates to contest elections. But he argued that the decision should ultimately be left to the voters regarding whom they wish to elect.
