ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday ordered the removal of Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri in the fake degree case.
The decision was announced by a division bench comprising Chief Justice Sarfraz Dogar and Justice Azam Khan.
The court directed the Ministry of Law to de-notify Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri.
In its verdict, the court held that Tariq Jahangiri did not possess a valid LLB degree at the time of his appointment as a judge.
It ruled that his appointment was illegal and that he was not eligible to hold the office of judge.
The court accepted the petition filed by Advocate Mian Dawood against Justice Tariq Jahangiri, while dismissing all petitions submitted by Justice Jahangiri.
Earlier, the court heard arguments in the degree case. Barrister Salahuddin, Akram Sheikh, Raja Aleem Abbasi and other lawyers gave the arguments.
During the hearing, petitioner Advocate Mian Dawood presented his arguments.
Barrister Salahuddin argued on two applications, while Akram Sheikh argued on one petition.
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Barrister Salahuddin requested an indefinite adjournment of the case, arguing that 30 days should be granted to submit a reply.
He maintained that the matter fell within the jurisdiction of the Sindh High Court and was not maintainable before the Islamabad High Court.
Barrister Salahuddin said that for the past one and a half years, propaganda had been carried out alleging that the degree was fake.
He claimed that the Registrar of Karachi University had acknowledged before the court that Justice Jahangiri had appeared in LLB Part I to III, and that there were procedural irregularities in the issuance of the degree.
He also contended that Karachi University had submitted a reply before the Islamabad High Court while concealing the fact that the Sindh High Court had suspended the declaration.
The Chief Justice asked whether a reply had been submitted, to which Barrister Salahuddin responded that the Higher Education Commission’s record had been received only at 3pm the previous day.
The Chief Justice questioned why a reply had been filed in the Sindh High Court but not before the Islamabad High Court.
After hearing the arguments, the judges announced the verdict at around 3:30pm, declaring Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri ineligible to hold the office of judge and ordering his removal.