NA Body Discusses Islamabad High Court (Amendment) Bill

ISLAMABAD (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 07th Nov, 2016 ) : The National Assembly's Standing Committee on Law and Justice Monday discussed the Islamabad High Court (Amendment) Bill, 2016 aimed at fixing quota of women judges in the respective courts.

The bill, , was considered by the committee, which met here under the chairmanship of Chaudhry Mahmood Bashir Virk. The bill, introduced in the House by Nikhat Shakeel Khan on August 2, states that women have under-representation in Pakistan's legal profession, particularly in the superior judiciary.

Only 5.8% of high court judges ln the country were women, and to date, no woman has been appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court or as chief justice of any of the high courts, it adds. Secretary Law and Justice Karamat Niazi told the committee that there should be no compromise on merit in appointments in judiciary while there was no bar in the Constitution for women to become judges.

The body was told that three women judges are working in Lahore High Court, and one each in Peshawar and Sindh high court. Some of the committee members suggested that bar councils should be consulted about the bill.

Committee chairman Mehmood Bashir Virk, however, opposed the bill saying thatnit was not their job to fix quota. The committee rejected the bill. Other agenda items included the Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 20l5 (insertion of new Article l9-B), the Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2016 (Amendment of section 35-A, Act V of 1908) and the Constitution Amendment Bill, 2016 (Amendment of Article 77).