The committee approved the nomination of Justice Yahya Afridi with a two-thirds majority and forwarded his name to the prime minister for final approval.
Talking to media persons after the meeting, Tarar said, “With a two-third majority, Justice Yahya Afridi’s nomination has been sent to the prime minister.”
The decision came after a meeting lasting over an hour and a half, attended by the committee members on Tuesday.
The committee was earlier notified by Pakistan’s National Assembly Speaker late Monday, a notification from the National Assembly Secretariat said, days before the incumbent top judge Justice Qazi Faez Isa is set to retire.
Profile of Justice Yahya Afridi
According to the Supreme Court website, Justice Yahya Afridi was born in Dera Ismail Khan on 23rd January 1965. He belongs to the Adam Khel section of the Afridi tribe located in the Kohat Frontier Region and is a resident of Village Babari Banda, District Kohat. He belongs to a family steeped in a tradition of public service.
His Lordship received his early education at Aitchison College, Lahore. He went on to earn his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Economics from Government College Lahore and later obtained his Masters of Arts degree in Economics from Punjab University, Lahore.
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After being awarded a Commonwealth Scholarship, Justice Afridi completed his LL.M. from Jesus College at the University of Cambridge. He was subsequently selected for a scholarship program for Young Commonwealth Lawyers at the Institute of Legal Studies in London.
His Lordship interned at Fox & Gibbons, Solicitors, in London, before returning to Pakistan where he joined Orr, Dignam & Co. in Karachi as an Associate. He went on to start his private practice in Peshawar and lectured at Khyber Law College, University of Peshawar where he taught International Law, Labour Law and Administrative Law.
His Lordship was enrolled as an advocate of the High Court in 1990 and as an advocate of the Supreme Court in 2004. He served as an Assistant Advocate General for the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and as a Federal Counsel for the Government of Pakistan while in practice.
His Lordship was elevated to the Bench of the Peshawar High Court as Additional Judge in 2010 and was confirmed as a Judge of the Peshawar High Court on 15th March 2012.
Justice Afridi became the first judge from the Federally Administered Tribal Area to assume the office of the Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court when he took oath on 30th December 2016. He served in that office until his elevation as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan on 28th June 2018.
