ISLAMABAD: The Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) approved the appointment of two former Supreme Court judges, Justice (retd) Tariq Masood and Justice (retd) Mazhar Alam Miankhel, as ad hoc judges to the Supreme Court for one year, sources said on Friday.

This decision followed a JCP meeting earlier today, chaired by Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa, to discuss appointing retired judges to the Supreme Court in an effort to reduce the backlog of cases.

Earlier in the day, it was reported that former judge of the Supreme Court Justice Mazhar Alam Miankhel also declined to be appointed as the ad hoc judge, days after ex-SC judges Justice Mushir Alam and Maqbool Baqar turned down the offers for the same position.

“Justice (retd) Miankhel has decided not to accept the offer due to personal reasons,” sources said.