In a milestone development, Lahore High Court’s first woman chief justice takes oath

In this screengrab, taken from a live Pakistan Television broadcast, Punjab Governor Sardar Saleem Haider Khan administers the oath to Justice Aalia Neelum as the first woman Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court at the Governor's House in Lahore on July 11, 2024. (Screengrab/PTV)

This handout profile photo shows Justice Aalia Neelum who is set to take oath as the first woman Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court. (Photo courtesy: Lahore High Court)

• Justice Aalia Neelum’s appointment was made by CJP Faez Isa in a meeting last week
• She played a vital role in establishing Gender-Based Violence Courts during her career

ISLAMABAD: In a historic development, Justice Aalia Neelum took the oath as the first woman Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Thursday, following the approval of her appointment by President Asif Ali Zardari in a notification issued a day earlier.
The LHC has significant importance in dealing with pivotal constitutional and rights-related cases in Pakistan. It has also been served by several highly respected female jurists in the past, though none of them had been elevated to the top position to manage the court’s internal affairs.
A senior Supreme Court judge, Justice Ayesha Malik, was also part of the LHC before she was appointed to the apex court.
“Throughout her career, Justice Miss Aalia Neelum has demonstrated a strong commitment to gender equality and women’s empowerment,” Pakistan’s state-owned Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) news agency said in one of its reports.
“She has played a pivotal role in the establishment of Gender-Based Violence Courts and has been a vocal advocate for women’s rights,” it added.
Justice Neelum, who began her legal career in 1996, received a guard of honor before the Punjab Governor, Sardar Saleem Haider Khan, administered her the oath.
According to APP, she quickly took on cases in various domains after joining the legal profession, including constitutional law, white-collar crime, anti-terrorism, accountability and banking laws.
She became an LHC judge in 2015, and her appointment as the Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court was made by the Judicial Commission of Pakistan, headed by Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Qazi Faez Isa, last week.