Tahira Safdar takes oath as first female chief justice

Justice Tahira Safdar the first female chief justice of a Pakistani high court took oath as the next chief justice of Balochistan High Court (BHC) on Saturday.

According to local media reports, Justice Safdar was administered oath by provincial governor Muhammad Khan Achakzai. The oath-taking ceremony was attended by Judges of BHC, the outgoing Chief Justice BHC Muhammad Noor Miskanzai, high ranking officials and elites of the city.

On August 13, Justice Safdar was appointed as the chief justice of BHC. She will be replacing Chief Justice Muskanzei who retired on August 31.

In July, the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar announced that Justice Safdar would be the next chief justice of BHC. Justice Safdar was the first lady to be appointed as civil court judge and high court judge in Balochistan in 1982.

She was  also one of the three judges of the special court for trial of offence of high treason against former President (retd) General Parvaiz Musharaf by proclaiming the state of emergency on November 3, 2007. The special court constituted under Section 4 Criminal Law Amendment Act 1976.