SC bids farewell to CJP Saqib Nisar as Justice Asif Saeed Khosa prepares to takeover

As the two-year tenure of the 25th Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar comes to an end, the Supreme Court (SC) held on Thursday a full court reference in honor of the retiring chief justice.

The ceremony was attended by all SC judges and was addressed by Chief Justice-designate Judge Asif Saeed Khosa and Supreme Court Bar President Kamran Murtaza. The retiring justice also addressed the ceremony.

During his address, the chief justice said that the SC gave several landmark verdicts with Gilgit-Baltistan being one of them. He said that the court took notice of water scarcity in which billions were donated by the people. The judge added that the court had also taken up the matter of increased population in Pakistan.

The retiring chief justice further said that the top court granted National Identity Cards (NICs) to transgender persons. He said that the SC had also taken up the Tayyaba torture case, local media reported. The CJP said, "I tried to return the respect given by the people."

Addressing the ceremony, Judge Khosa, who will take oath tomorrow, said that the outgoing CJP headed the judiciary in very difficult circumstances. "Currently there are 1.9 million cases pending in courts," he said, adding that three thousand judges couldn’t hear these cases.

Outlining his plan for his tenure, the chief justice-designate said that the SC will rarely take suo motu notices and will only use the right when absolutely necessary. He said he also wants to pay off the country's debt.