ISLAMABAD: Taking oath as a judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan on Monday (today), Justice Ayesha A Malik will mark the country's judicial history by being the first woman judge of the apex court. She was officially elevated to the rank of the first woman judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan on Friday.
Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Gulzar Ahmed will administer the oath at 9 am at a ceremony held in the Supreme Court building. Justice Umar Ata Bandiyal, the nominated CJP, and all other judges of the SC will be present. With Justice Ayesha taking the oath of office, the Supreme Court will get 17 judges, of whom eight are from Punjab alone. Besides Justice Ayesha, the other judges of Punjab are Justice Umar Ata Bandiyal, Justice Sardar Tariq Masood, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Qazi Muhammad Amin, Justice Aminuddin Khan and Justice Syed Mazahir Ali Naqvi. Interestingly, four judges from Lahore will now have the opportunity to become CJP in the future, namely, Justice Umar Ata Bandiyal, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Ayesha A. Malik. It is pertinent to mention here that the elevation of Justice Ayesha as a Supreme Court judge did not prove to be an easy step as lawyers across the country opposed her promotion on the basis of seniority.