- The 18th Amendment to the Constitution led to the re-establishment of the IHC, and the Islamabad High Court Act of 2010 was eventually passed into law.
- Justice Minallah was given a position on the IHC in June 2014 after being selected for the position. He is widely regarded as being among the most qualified judges in the higher courts.
- Justice Minallah will assume the office of IHC Chief Justice on Nov 27, 2018 as the incumbent Chief Justice, a position he holds to this day.
Honourable Chief Justice Athar Minallah is a renowned jurist from Pakistan who is currently appointed as the Chief Justice of Islamabad High Court since 28 November 2018. A lawyer by profession that frequently took an active part in the various lawyer movements to safeguard their rights. Justice Athar Minallah is a staunch supporter of free speech in the country advocating to ensure better rights and freedom.
Early Life
Athar Minallah was born into a humble Muslim family in 30th December, 1961. He is the eldest son of the late Mr. Nasrum Minallah who served the Pakistan Government as a Commissioner during the 60s and 70s and wife Mrs. Bilquees Minallah. The honourable judge spent his early life in the northern city of Haripur in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa along with his siblings.
Mr. Athar was married to Miss. Ghazala the daughter of Judge Ghulam Safdar Shah, who was a member of the bench that convicted and condemned former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto but issued a dissenting note opposing the verdict, for which he suffered the wrath of the military dictator at the time, General Ziaul Haq. Just like her husband Mrs. Ghazala Minallah is an outspoken human rights activist that also works as Head of the Law Department at The Universal College Islamabad.
Career & Education
Justice Athar Minallah obtained his primary education from his hometown in Haripur and after completing his higher education secured a position in Pakistan Customs. He quickly rose to senior positions due to his hard working nature and professional work ethics. Although unsatisfied with his position he later reigned and started to pursue a career in practicing law.
As a lawyer the Justice Athar Minallah has always remained very active lawyer movements but after the preceding chief justice, Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, was deposed from his position he became increasingly involved in the movement of attorneys advocating for the reinstatement of the judiciary. In spite of this, once Justice Chaudhry was reinstated, he turned became a critic of the judiciary due to the excessive number of suo motu cases that led to the pendency of routine proceedings.
Justice Minallah was given a position on the IHC in June 2014 after being selected for the position. He is widely regarded as being among the most qualified judges in the higher courts.
Over the course of the last several years, he has published major decisions in a variety of civil litigation situations, including real estate, criminal cases, the environment, and the search for missing individuals.
Islamabad High Court
In its ruling issued on July 31, 2009, the Supreme Court removed more than one hundred judges from the superior court and proclaimed the IHC null and invalid.
The 18th Amendment to the Constitution led to the reestablishment of the IHC, and the Islamabad High Court Act of 2010 was eventually passed into law.
The statute designates a chief justice and six other justices, all of whom are chosen from the several provinces and territories. Following the re-establishment of the IHC, another judge from the LHC named Iqbar Hameedur Rehman was given the position of chief justice of the IHC. In February of 2013, he was promoted to the Supreme Court, and Judge Anwar Kasi was appointed as the chief justice.
Justice Athar Minallah was ranked third on the seniority list in the IHC prior to the dismissal of Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui. Siddiqui was a former senior puisne judge who was removed from his position a month ago for accusing the Inter-Services Intelligence, the premier intelligence agency, of manipulating decisions made by the superior judiciary in a speech that was delivered during an event that was organised by the Rawalpindi Bar Association.
After that, Justice Minallah was elevated to the position of senior puisne judge. The appointment of Justice Minallah as the next chief justice of the Islamic High Court was finalised on Thursday by the Parliamentary Committee, despite the fact that Justice Siddiqui has petitioned the Supreme Court to stop the oath taking until a decision is taken on his petition, in which he challenged his removal.
Headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar, JCP on Nov 1 recommended Justice Minallah for the post of IHC chief justice. As per Article 175-A of the Constitution, the eight-member parliamentary committee will send the confirmation of Justice Minallah to the prime minister who shall forward it to the president for appointment. Justice Minallah will assume office of IHC Chief Justice on Nov 27, 2018 as the incumbent Chief Justice, a position he holds to this day.
