First visually impaired civil judge takes oath in Pakistan

LAHORE, Pakistan — The country’s first visually impaired civil judge, Yousaf Saleem, on Tuesday took oath of his office along with 20 other recently appointed judicial officers in Punjab.

Lahore High Court Chief Justice Muhammad Yawar Ali administered the oath to the civil judges at a ceremony held at the Punjab Judicial Academy.

The other civil judges who took oath included Sardar Umar Hassan Khan, Saba Qamar, Naseem Akhtar Naz, Maira Hassan, Qamar Abbas, Ehsan Nawaz, Muhammad Bilal, Muhammad Amir Sultan Kolachi, Muhammad Abbas, Sumaira Jabbar, Ali Raza, Muhammad Bilal Khan, Muhammad Tariq, Rasheed Khan, Obaid Hassan, Sana Afzal, Mansoor Ahmad, Allah Nawaz, Muhammad Zubair Sabir, Muhammad Javed Iqbal and Shaheen Noor.

The chief justice urged the judges to deliver justice without fear and favor. He said rendering justice was a sacred profession.

Lahore-based Saleem was initially denied the position of civil judge despite being a topper in the examination.

Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar had taken notice of the matter and directed the Lahore High Court to review the case observing that a visually impaired person could become a judge provided he met other requirements.