ISLAMABAD: Sitting chief justice of Pakistan Justice Gulzar Ahmed will retire early next month (Feb 2, 2022) and senior most judge Justice Umar Ata Bandial will become Chief Justice of Pakistan.
The elevation of Justice Umar Ata Bandial is just three weeks away. Justice Gulzar Ahmed will is set to retire after working in this top judicial position for over two years.
Chief Justice of Pakistan is appointed on seniority basis after the retirement of CJP. For the appointment of CJP neither the executive nor any other authority nor any government leader has power to appointment chief justice of Pakistan unlike army chief.
The judges of apex court, including the CJP, retire after attaining the age of 65 years while the high court judge superannuates on reaching the age of 62 years under the Constitution.
Furthermore, the seniority of a supreme court judge is counted from the day of his elevation to the Supreme Court.
Importantly, sitting CJP Justice Gulzar Ahmed assumed the office of the chief justice on December 21, 2019 by replacing Chief Justice Saqib Nisar.
Justice Bandial will continue for 19 months as the chief justice till his retirement on September 18, 2023.
Following Justice Bandial’s superannuation, Justice Qazi Faez Isa will become the next chief justice of Pakistan in case he survived intrigues against him till that time. Justice Qazi Essa will remain in office as CJP for over one year, till October 25, 2024.
