International News 
- CJP Gulzar Ahmed to administer oath to Justice Ayesha at Supreme Court.
- Justice Umar Ata Bandial and other SC judges to attend oath taking ceremony.
- SC to attain strength of 17 judges of whom eight belong to Punjab alone.
ISLAMABAD: Justice Ayesha Malik will make history in Pakistan’s judicial system by becoming the first female judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan today, The News reported.
Justice Ayesha had been officially elevated to the rank of a judge of the apex court on Friday.
Today, she will take the oath as a judge of the apex court, which will be administered by Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Gulzar Ahmed at the SC building at 9am.
Meanwhile, Justice Umar Ata Bandial, who has been nominated as the next top judge of Pakistan, and other SC judges will also attend the oath taking ceremony.
With Justice Ayesha taking the office as an SC judge, the apex court will attain the strength of 17 judges of whom eight belong to Punjab alone.
Besides Justice Ayesha, other judges from Punjab include Justice Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Sardar Tariq Masood, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Qazi Muhammad Amin, Justice Aminuddin Khan and Justice Syed Mazahir Ali Naqvi.
Interestingly, the four judges from Lahore who will now have the opportunity to become the CJP in the future are Justice Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Ayesha A. Malik.
The Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) had approved the nomination of Justice Ayesha Malik for her appointment as an SC judge with a vote of five to four, on Thursday.
It is pertinent to mention here that the elevation of Justice Ayesha as SC judge did not prove to be a cakewalk as lawyers from across the country had opposed her promotion making seniority a basis, as she is ranked fourth in the Lahore High Court in terms of seniority.
The Pakistan Bar Council had declared a strike against the appointment of Justice Ayesha Malik.
Out of the 17 judges appointed in the Supreme Court, Justice Ayesha Malik has been nominated for the seat which became vacant after the retirement of Justice Mushir Alam on August 17.
Chief Justice of Pakistan and Chief Justice Lahore High Court had suggested the name of Justice Ayesha Malik, to which Justice Ayesha also agreed in writing.
