-
-
-
Loading
Loading
GILGIT: Despite assurances from the federal government and a ruling by the Supreme Court of Pakistan, vacant positions in the Gilgit-Baltistan Supreme Appellate Court have not been filled for the past ten years.
Lawyers have termed the situation a judicial crisis in the region, as tens of thousands of cases have remained pending in the highest judicial forum for years.
The GB Supreme Appellate Court is the region’s top judicial body, comprising a chief judge and two judges.
Senior lawyer Adnan Hussain Advocate told Dawn that the court’s quorum has not been completed since the demise of judge Shahbaz Khan in 2016.
Around 10,000 cases pending as court operating with only one judge for past several years
Following his death, the vacancy was not filled. Later, another judge, Javed Ahmed, retired in 2018. One position was eventually filled when GB Chief Court judge Wazir Shakeel was elevated to the Supreme Appellate Court. However, after serving three years, he also retired in 2021.
Adnan Hussain said the Supreme Appellate Court has effectively remained non-functional since 2016 due to the incomplete quorum of three judges.
He added that many cases cannot be heard by a two-member bench, while the court has been operating with only one judge for the past six years.
According to the rules, a single judge in the GB Supreme Appellate Court cannot hear cases, resulting in thousands of important cases remaining pending.
Another lawyer, Hafeezur Rehman Advocate, said that under GB laws, the authority to appoint judges in the higher judiciary rests with the prime minister of Pakistan, who serves as chairman of the GB Council.
He said thousands of cases, mostly of public importance, are pending in the court, including service appeals, promotion and seniority disputes, and criminal appeals against GB Chief Court decisions.
He added that completing the judges’ quorum is also a key demand of the local population.
The legal fraternity in Gilgit-Baltistan staged protests for nine months last year, boycotting court proceedings and holding demonstrations across the region to demand appointments in the Supreme Appellate Court.
The protest call was given by the Gilgit-Baltistan Bar Council, the GB Supreme Appellate Court Bar Association, and High Court Bar Associations of all ten districts.
One of the lawyers’ primary concerns was the vacant positions in the Supreme Appellate Court, which has led to around 10,000 cases being pending.
In May last year, the Supreme Court of Pakistan directed the federal government to fill two vacant positions in the GB Supreme Appellate Court.
Adnan Hussain said the GB government had assured lawyers it would address their concerns, including initiating a summary for the appointment of two judges in the Supreme Appellate Court and one judge in the GB Chief Court.
He added that one judge’s position in the GB Chief Court, along with several civil judge posts, has also remained vacant for years.
Muddasir Hussain Advocate said that while judges in other parts of Pakistan are appointed through a judicial commission, appointments in Gilgit-Baltistan are made administratively.
Sources said that summaries recommending names for two vacant positions in the Supreme Appellate Court and one in the GB Chief Court were sent twice by the GB governor to the prime minister, in his capacity as chairman of the GB Council.
However, the Prime Minister’s Office returned the summaries with objections.
Sources further claimed that judicial appointments are being influenced by political considerations rather than merit, with political parties lobbying for their preferred candidates, causing delays in the process.
Many litigants have been waiting for years for their appeals and service-related cases to be heard, worsening the judicial crisis.
One litigant, Saeed Faroqi, said he was illegally terminated from the GB Local Government Department and had filed an appeal in the Supreme Appellate Court.
He said his case has not been fixed for hearing for the past ten years due to the incomplete quorum of judges. “I have been waiting for the court to complete its quorum for a decade,” he said.
In November last year, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif extended the tenure of Chief Judge of the GB Supreme Appellate Court, Sardar Muhammad Shamim Khan, for three more years.
Lawyers said that even a single vacant position in the court has never been filled promptly, while two positions have remained vacant for over a decade.
Published in Dawn, March 30th, 2026
if you want to get more information about this news then click on below link
More Detail