Justice K.K. Agha took oath as a judge of the newly formed Federal Constitutional Court, with Chief Justice Aminuddin Khan administering the oath at a ceremony attended by senior members of the judiciary.
Other Judges of the Federal Constitutional Court — Justice Aamer Farooq, Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi and Justice Ali Baqar Najafi — were present on the occasion. Islamabad High Court Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar, along with other IHC judges, also joined the ceremony, while representatives of the Islamabad High Court Bar Association, including President Wajid Gilani and Secretary Manzoor Jajja, were in attendance.
Read: Who is who on the first bench of newly formed Federal Constitutional Court?
Earlier, IHC judges Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir and Justice Muhammad Azam Khan arrived for the event, followed by Justice Inaam Amin Minhas, Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro and Justice Muhammad Asif.
Soon after the Senate passed four bills tied to the 27th Constitutional Amendment, the government moved quickly to operationalise the new judicial framework.
Justice Aminuddin Khan was sworn in earlier as the first chief justice of the Federal Constitutional Court, with President Asif Ali Zardari administering the oath at Aiwan-e-Sadr.
In a related development, the president accepted the resignations of Supreme Court Justices Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah, who stepped down, calling the amendment an affront to the judiciary and the 1973 Constitution.
Justice Aminuddin’s oath ceremony began with the recitation of the Holy Quran, after which he pledged to uphold the Constitution, follow the Supreme Judicial Council’s code of conduct, and ensure decisions free of personal interest, fear or favour.
The ceremony was attended by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Chief Justice Yahya Afridi, Senate Chairman Yousaf Raza Gilani, NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq, First Lady Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, cabinet members, COAS Field Marshal Asim Munir, CJCSC General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, parliamentarians and members of the legal fraternity.
Read More: ’27th Amendment to ensure justice’
Along with Justice Agha, six judges were appointed to the FCC under Article 175A read with Article 175C. These include Justices Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Aamer Farooq and Ali Baqar Najafi of the Supreme Court, Justice KK Agha of the Sindh High Court, Balochistan High Court Chief Justice Rozi Khan Barrech, and Justice (retd) Arshad Hussain Shah, appointed after Justice Musarrat Hilali declined to join.
Of the appointed judges, Justices Rizvi, Farooq and Najafi were administered the oath by Justice Aminuddin at the Islamabad High Court.
Justice Agha’s appointment brings the FCC bench closer to full strength, with the government now considering increasing the total number of judges from seven to thirteen, a move that would require fresh parliamentary approval.
