President Zardari approves de-notification of Justice Tariq Mehmood

President Asif Ali Zardari approved on Friday the de-notification of Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri as a judge of the Islamabad High Court, on the advice of the Prime Minister.

The de-notification has been issued in compliance with the decision of the Islamabad High Court, which declared his appointment as a judge to be illegal and ordered him to vacate office, said the press release by the president’s secretariat.

On Thursday, the IHC declared Justice Mehmood unfit to hold office, disqualifying him following a high-profile case involving a fraudulent law degree.

The short order, which the bench had earlier reserved, said, “We declare the elevation of Respondent No.1 (Justice Jahangiri) was without lawful authority, as he was not eligible to be elevated as a Judge of a High Court. Thus, he ceased to hold the office of the judge of Islamabad High Court, forthwith.”

It directed the IHC office to transmit a copy of this order to the Law and Justice Division to de-notify him as judge of this Court and further to do the needful.

The bench also disposed of all the pending miscellaneous applications.

The IHC order further said, “We have given ample opportunity to Respondent No.1 to submit his reply along with disputed education credentials, but he failed to do so for the reasons best known to him. As such, this Court has left with no other option but to proceed further in the matter.”

Background

The scandal surfaced in July 2024 after a Karachi University letter leaked on social media, revealing that Jahangiri’s enrollment number (5968) actually belonged to another student. The Karachi University Syndicate officially cancelled his enrollment and degree in August 2024.

Petitioner Mian Dawood argued before the bench that Justice Jahangiri had committed perjury by taking a false oath regarding his credentials.

Karachi University declares Justice Tariq Jahangiri’s degree forged

Dawood submitted that the judge’s enrollment forms and degrees were “bogus” from the outset. While defence counsel argued for a stay based on pending proceedings in the Sindh High Court and the right to a fair trial under Article 10A, the bench proceeded with the disqualification based on the verified university records.

Justice Jahangiri was appointed to the IHC in December 2020. He was notably one of the six IHC judges who wrote a joint letter to the Supreme Judicial Council in March 2023, alleging interference in judicial matters by intelligence agencies.