ISLAMABAD – Parliamentary Committee on Judges Appointment on Wednesday unanimously approved the nomination of Lahore High Court’s (LHC) Justice Ayesha Malik as a judge of the Supreme Court.
A member of the panel said that the decision was taken in light of Justice Ayesha’s gender. However, he insisted that the seniority principle will be adhered to in the future for promotions.
Earlier this month, the Judicial Commission of Pakistan approved the elevation of Lahore High Court Justice Ayesha A. Malik to the Supreme Court, which will make her the country’s first-ever woman judge to sit on the apex court.
Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed chaired the JCP meeting during which Justice Malik’s elevation was approved by a majority of five votes against four.
This is the second time that the JCP held a meeting to decide on Justice Malik’s elevation. A lack of consensus during an extended meeting of the JCP on Sept 9 last year had forced the commission to reject her elevation.
During that meeting, four members of the eight-member JCP had opposed the proposal to elevate Justice Malik – the fourth most senior judge of the LHC – while an equal number had supported it.
