Justice Yahya Afridi has been appointed as the 30th Chief Justice of Pakistan, following approval from President Asif Ali Zardari. Afridi, who has served as a Supreme Court Justice since 2018, will officially assume office on October 26, succeeding Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa.
The appointment was finalized after a 12-member special parliamentary committee nominated Afridi under the 26th Constitutional Amendment. The decision received the backing of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and the president signed off on the recommendation.
Justice Afridi brings decades of legal experience to the role. His legal career began in 1990 when he enrolled as an advocate of the high court, followed by his registration with the Supreme Court in 2004. He previously served as Assistant Advocate General for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and as a Federal Counsel for the Government of Pakistan.
Afridi’s judicial career advanced in 2010 when he was appointed as an Additional Judge of the Peshawar High Court. Two years later, he was confirmed as a permanent judge. Notably, Afridi made history by becoming the first judge from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) to serve as Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court in 2016. He held the position until his elevation to the Supreme Court on June 28, 2018.
New Era in Judiciary
The selection process for Afridi’s new role was not without political drama. The special parliamentary committee, formed on Monday by National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq, held an in-camera session at Parliament House late Tuesday. Comprising eight MNAs and four senators from various political parties, the committee worked to reach a consensus on Afridi’s nomination.
However, the session took place without the participation of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and its ally, the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), both of which boycotted the meeting. They objected to the recent constitutional amendments that led to the formation of the committee.
In their absence, nine members attended the session, with eight supporting Afridi’s nomination. Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) leader Kamran Murtaza cast the only dissenting vote, favoring senior puisne judge Mansoor Ali Shah.
The composition of the special committee included representatives from key political parties. PML-N members Khawaja Asif, Ahsan Iqbal, Shaista Pervaiz Malik, and Azam Nazeer Tarar, along with PPP leaders Raja Pervez Ashraf, Naveed Qamar, and Senator Farooq H. Naek, played significant roles in the deliberations. Rana Ansar of MQM-P and PTI-affiliated members Gohar Khan and Senator Ali Zafar were also part of the panel, though the latter abstained from the proceedings.