SC’s Justice Faez Isa supports recruitment of judges in superior courts through exams

LAHORE: Supreme Court (SC) senior judge, Justice Qazi Faez Isa, has supported the idea of conducting examinations for the appointment of judges in the superior courts like it is followed in the recruitment of civil and additional sessions judges.

Addressing the lawyers at Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA) and Punjab Bar Council (PBC) on Saturday, Justice Isa said, “If there can be an examination for appointment of civil and additional sessions judges, why cannot the same be held for the appointment of judges in high courts.”

He added that appointing a judge is the most difficult task but it should be done transparently and there is no harm in conducting examinations for the recruitment.

Justice Isa said, “I pray to Allah Almighty to enable me to make decisions according to the constitution and law.”

He commented that a judge should not be brave but ‘most fearful’. “A judge having fear of Allah and the constitution would only decide the cases without any fear and favour and in accordance with the constitution and law.”

Dispelling the impression that he was a ray of hope for the nation, SC judge remarked that the lawyers are the real hope as they are the eyes of the nation and keep a check on every institution of the country.

“Inordinate delay in cases is a major complaint of the litigants and the judiciary should address it on an emergency basis,” he opined and informed that during his tenure as chief justice of Balochistan High Court (BHC), he had prepared a checklist to deal with the delay of cases.

He said lawyers’ strike is a punishment for litigants as their precious time and money go wasted while the judges and staff do not care because they continue to receive their salaries.

Besides this, Justice Isa told that he had nominated the first woman judge for the SC as the chief justice of the high court but she was not elevated. He added that he did not know the reasons behind it as he was not a member of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) then.

SC judge said it had been repeated thousands of times that the bar and the bench are two wheels of a vehicle but it should be remembered that the vehicle only runs smooth if its wheels are of the same size.

He opposed the VIP culture in the country and said he did not understand why important personalities got priority. “Every time the sirens blare for important personalities, it causes noise pollution,“ Justice Qazi said.

He said the founder of the nation, Quaid-e-Azam, won the country through negotiations because he had a vision and avoided war.

Shedding light on weakness in the judicial system, Justice Isa said he received death threats and his wife went to the police station but no first information report (FIR) was registered for five days. Later, it was registered through an online system, he added.

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