KARACHI: The Karachi Bar Association (KBA) has strongly condemned the removal of Islamabad High Court (IHC) judge Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri.

On Dec 20, a two-judge IHC bench headed by Chief Justice Sardar Mohammad Sarfraz Dogar had ordered the removal of Justice Jahangiri after allowing a petition challenging the validity of his law degree. Subsequently, the president had also approved the de-notification of Justice Jahangiri on the advice of the prime minister on the same night.

In a statement, the KBA said only the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) is the constitutional forum to remove judges of the high courts and Supreme Court and any “executive or administrative process” is unconstitutional.

Bar President Amir Nawaz Warraich and General Secretary Ghulam Rehman Korai stated that the de-notification had been effected with extraordinary haste and in a manner manifestly inconsistent with the constitutional guarantees of judicial independence, due process and institutional propriety.

“Such action directly impinges upon the doctrine of separation of powers enshrined in the Constitution and poses a serious threat to the independence of the superior judiciary,” it added.

The KBA also stated that the removal of a sitting judge of IHC has been undertaken despite existence of disputed questions of facts, pending judicial proceedings, subsisting stay orders and complaints on the subject matter already seized by the SJC.

Under Article 209, the SJC is the sole and exclusive constitutional forum competent to inquiry into the conduct, capacity or removal of judges of superior judiciary and any parallel, executive or administrative process is ultra vires the Constitution, void ab initio and no legal affect, it maintained.

The KBA emphasised that the security of the tenure of judges was not a personal privilege but a constitutional safeguard designed to ensure fearless and independent adjudication.

“Any action that weakens this protection risks establishing a dangerous precedent, challenging judicial independence and exposing judges to external influence, contrary to settled constitutional jurisprudence and internationally recognised standards, including the UN Basic principles on the independence of the judiciary,” it added.

The KBA also reiterated that judicial accountability must be pursued strictly in accordance with the Constitution and law through transparent, fair and independent mechanism.

Published in Dawn, December 21st, 2025