Key Takeaways
- The Islamabad High Court (IHC) is working on a policy for rotating judges to other provinces.
- The move follows a longstanding demand by the capital’s legal fraternity and was accepted in principle by the NJPMC.
- The policy aims to ensure institutional balance and provide inter-provincial exposure to judges.
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) administration has initiated the development of a policy for the rotation of judges from the subordinate judiciary to other provinces, a long-standing demand of the capital’s legal fraternity. The policy was accepted in principle by the National Judicial Policy Making Committee (NJPMC).
Several proposals are being considered to determine the modalities for implementing the inter-provincial rotation of judges from Islamabad’s district judiciary. One proposal suggests that judicial officers posted to other provinces should preferably be sent to the province from where they originally belong.
The Islamabad judiciary comprises officers who joined the service through various modes, including initial appointments, absorption, and deputation. Currently, judicial officers from all four provinces are serving in the capital. There are approximately 60 judicial officers in the Islamabad judiciary, and the authorities are considering whether all of them, 50%, or one-third should be rotated to other provinces.
Another issue under consideration is whether the rotation should cover all tiers of the subordinate judiciary, including civil judges, senior civil judges, additional district and sessions judges, and district and sessions judges, or be limited to certain categories.
A legal expert familiar with the proposed mechanism stated, 'Whatever formula is adopted, one thing is clear: the equal number of judges sent from Islamabad will be brought in from the provinces to maintain the strength of the district judiciary.'
The proposed policy follows a longstanding demand by Islamabad’s lawyers for giving the district judiciary of the federal capital the same opportunity for inter-provincial transfers and rotations available to judges in the provinces. In May, the Islamabad High Court Bar Association formally demanded a uniform transfer and rotation policy for the district judiciary.
The move came after years of calls from the legal fraternity for greater institutional balance in the capital’s district courts. The issue has gained further significance following the transfer of three IHC judges to the Lahore, Peshawar, and Sindh high courts earlier this year.
Bar bodies had subsequently called for a structured and periodic rotation mechanism for judges rather than selective transfers. The concept of rotating Islamabad’s lower court judges is not new. In 2018, the federal government had proposed amendments to the Islamabad Judicial Service Rules to enable subordinate court judges to be sent on deputation to other provinces, while noting that the existing rules did not provide for such transfers.
However, the proposed mechanism has generated apprehensions among some judicial officers. Concerns have been expressed that frequent movement between Islamabad and other provinces could expose judges to new forms of professional pressure, including attempts by lawyers to influence judicial decisions or pressure judges considered 'non-cooperative'.
Whatever formula is adopted, one thing is clear: the equal number of judges sent from Islamabad will be brought in from the provinces to maintain the strength of the district judiciary.
A legal expert familiar with the proposed mechanism, Not specified
