LHC Justice Shams Mehmood resigns after Mansoor Ali Shah, Athar Minallah resignation

LAHORE (Dunya News) - In the aftermath of the controversial 27th Constitutional Amendment, Justice Shams Mehmood Mirza of the Lahore High Court submitted his resignation.

Justice Shams Mehmood’s resignation follows similar moves by Supreme Court senior judges Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah, who also stepped down in protest over the 27th amendment, citing concerns over judicial independence.

Justice Shams Mehmood, who took oath as an Additional Judge of the Lahore High Court on March 22, 2014, was due to retire in 2028. He is the son of former Supreme Court judge Justice Zia Mahmood Mirza. Reports indicate that, following the 27th Amendment, he was likely to be transferred to another province. Justice Shams Mehmood was also a member of the Lahore High Court’s administrative committee.

The resignations come in the wake of widespread criticism that the 27th Amendment undermines the judiciary by placing it under the government’s control.

Read also: President Zardari accepts resignations of Justices Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah

Justice Mansoor Ali Shah stated that the amendment “has struck a blow to the spirit of our constitutional democracy” and warned that justice for the common man is increasingly distant. He emphasized that remaining in office would signify tacit approval of what he described as a “serious attack on the Constitution of Pakistan.”

Justice Athar Minallah, in his resignation, echoed these concerns, stating that the oath he took to uphold the Constitution no longer held meaning following the amendment. He described the decision to resign as a matter of principle, after trying to convince himself that the Constitution was still intact.