In a crucial development within Pakistan’s judicial system, five judges of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) have filed a miscellaneous petition before the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC), challenging the transfer of their intra-court appeal (ICA). The appeal was originally with the Supreme Court (SC), but has now been fixed before the FCC under the 27th Constitutional Amendment.
The judges behind the petition — Justices Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Babar Sattar, Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan, Saman Rafat Imtiaz, and Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri — argue that the intra-court appeal ought to be returned to the Supreme Court. They contend that the matter, by its very nature, falls within the SC’s exclusive jurisdiction and that shifting it to the FCC undermines the constitutional balance.
At the core of their legal challenge is a pointed claim: the 27th Amendment, which established the FCC, contradicts the Constitution’s basic structure by weakening the judiciary. The petitioners argue that while Parliament has the power to amend the Constitution, it cannot dilute or dismantle the independence of the court system — particularly by stripping the SC of its appellate authority.
The judges further assert that several landmark judgments support the separation of powers and judicial independence. They contend that the appellate jurisdiction in such critical transfer and seniority disputes inherently belongs to the Supreme Court, unless the Constitution explicitly says otherwise.
The case in question involves the transfer of three judges from various high courts to the IHC. Earlier, the SC’s Constitutional Bench upheld those transfers, sparking this intra-court appeal. Now, with the FCC set to hear the ICA on November 24, the petition filed by the five judges will determine whether the court can proceed or must remit the appeal back to the Supreme Court.
This legal battle not only raises profound questions about the limits of constitutional amendments, but also highlights the tension between judicial independence and parliamentary reform — a debate with long-term implications for Pakistan’s judiciary.
