ISLAMABAD: On Wednesday, Justice Umar Ata Bandial took the oath as the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP). He became the 28th Chief Justice of Pakistan. Justice Gulzar Ahmed retired on February 1 after completing his term of two years.
The oath was administrated by the President of Pakistan Dr Arif Alvi in a ceremony attended by Prime Minister Imran Khan, Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani, Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser, Minister of Foreign Affairs Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Minister Information Fawad Chaudhry, retired Supreme Court judges in Islamabad.
In December 2004, Justice Umar Ata Bandial was elevated as a judge of Lahore High Court (LHC) but refused to take oath in 2007 under Provisional Constitution Order (PCO). He was restored to his position after the civil society and lawyers movement and served till June 2014 as Chief Justice of LHC.
He was behind many important judgments on several private and public issues, including Constitutional rights, public interest matters, and civil & commercial disputes.
Justice Bandial will serve till September 18, 2023 as the chief justice. Justice Qazi Faez will then take over the position till October 25, 2024 followed by Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan and later Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah.