In a significant judicial development, President Asif Ali Zardari has appointed Justice Yahya Afridi as the next Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP). Justice Afridi will assume the role on October 26, 2024, succeeding the current CJP, Justice Qazi Faez Isa. He will be the 30th Chief Justice of Pakistan, serving a fixed three-year term.
The appointment was made under Articles 175A(3), 177, and 179 of the Constitution and was formally announced in a statement from the Aiwan-e-Sadar. Justice Afridi’s nomination was approved following a recommendation from the Special Parliamentary Committee, which had been formed for the first time in the country’s history to select the CJP.
The committee, with representatives from all parliamentary political parties, including senators and National Assembly members from both opposition and treasury benches, chose Justice Afridi with a two-thirds majority. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif forwarded the committee’s recommendation to President Zardari for final approval.
However, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the key opposition party, opted out of the committee’s meetings and has since rejected Justice Afridi’s nomination. PTI has criticized the 26th Constitutional Amendment, under which the new process of appointing the CJP was established. The party argues that it undermines the judiciary’s independence and has vowed to challenge the amendment and the appointment when it returns to power.
The ruling coalition had successfully passed the contentious 26th Constitutional Amendment last week, which redefined the process for appointing the CJP by involving a parliamentary committee. The PTI strongly opposed the reform and has pledged to revoke it.
Profile of Justice Yahya Afridi
Justice Yahya Afridi was born on January 23, 1965, in Dera Ismail Khan and hails from the Adam Khel section of the Afridi tribe. He received his early education at Aitchison College, Lahore, and later earned his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Economics from Government College Lahore. He also holds a Master’s degree in Economics from Punjab University.
A Commonwealth Scholar, Justice Afridi completed his LLM at the University of Cambridge’s Jesus College. His legal career began in Peshawar, where he practiced law and lectured at Khyber Law College. In 2010, he was elevated to the Peshawar High Court as an Additional Judge and confirmed as a full Judge in 2012. In December 2016, he became the Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court and later joined the Supreme Court of Pakistan in June 2018.
Justice Afridi’s diverse legal background and extensive experience make him a prominent figure in Pakistan’s judiciary as he prepares to assume his new role as Chief Justice.
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