Judicial system has taken roots in Pakistan: CJ

Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, set to retire next month, has said Pakistan's judicial system has taken roots and cannot be influenced even after his retirement.

Chaudhry, who will step down on December 12, made the remarks while hearing a case related to alleged corruption in arranging the annual Haj pilgrimage.

He said it was regrettable that the government had written a letter to the IMF that the Chief Justice believed in transparency and an appointment to a key post could be made only after his retirement, The News daily reported.

Chaudhry said the Constitution authorises the government to make appointments but courts are being ridiculed in this manner by the government.

He has built a reputation by pulling up the government over corruption and poor governance and turned the judiciary into a strong pillar, often through direct confrontation with the civilian administration and the military.

Chaudhry forced former premier Yousuf Raza Gilani to step down over his refusal to wrote to Swiss authorities to reopen graft cases against then President Asif Ali Zardari. His critics had described it as a "judicial coup".

He will be succeeded by soft-spoken Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, who will serve for just six months and 25 days. The slot has to automatically go to the senior most judge after the retirement of the current Chief Justice.

Born in Quetta on December 12, 1948, Chaudhry is the longest serving Chief Justice in Pakistan's history. He was appointed to the post on June 30, 2005 but remained dysfunctional from November 3, 2007 to March 16, 2009 after he was deposed by former military ruler Pervez Musharraf.

After Jillani's retirement, Justice Nasirul Mulk would become the next Chief Justice and his tenure would last a little more than a year.