Chief Justice of the Federal Shariat Court
The Chief Justice of the Federal Shariat Court of Pakistan heads the Federal Shariat Court of Pakistan. The Chief Justice of the Shariat Court is the second-highest judicial office in the country, after the Chief Justice of Pakistan.
The Acting ...
. Prior to his appointment as chief justice of the Islamic Court on 15 May 2021, he served as the 18th chief justice of
Balochistan High Court
The Balochistan High Court ( ur, ) is the highest judicial institution of Balochistan, Pakistan. The court is formally known as the High Court of Balochistan. It is situated in the provincial capital, Quetta.
Mir Ali Dost Bugti was the first ...
from 26 December 2014 to 31 August 2018. He was assassinated by an outlawed insurgent group in his hometown. His killer was arrested 2 weeks after his assassination and is now under investigation of ISI, so the facilitators of murder and other suspects could also be arrested in the case.
The
president of Pakistan
The president of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=s̤adr-i Pākiṣṭān), officially the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is the ceremonial head of state of Pakistan and the commander-in-chief of the Pakistan Armed Forces. three days before his retirement from the legal services. He was critically injured on 14 October 2022 when he was shot outside a mosque in
Kharan, Pakistan
Kharan ( bal, ھاران; ur, ) is a town in Kharan District, Balochistan, Pakistan. It is located at 28°35'0N 65°25'0E with an altitude of 692 metres (2273 feet). It is also division headquarters of Rakhshan Division. It is populated with many ...
. Later he died at a nearby hospital.
Earlier life
Meskanzai was born in
Kharan, Pakistan
Kharan ( bal, ھاران; ur, ) is a town in Kharan District, Balochistan, Pakistan. It is located at 28°35'0N 65°25'0E with an altitude of 692 metres (2273 feet). It is also division headquarters of Rakhshan Division. It is populated with many ...
to Dr. Molvi Muhammad Qasim Aini Baloch. He did his early schooling from the Government Middle School (in modern-day High School), Kunri. The school was founded by his father and was the first private educational institution in the area. It was later recognised by the Education Commission of Pakistan between 1951 and 1952. He did his
matriculation
Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination.
Australia
In Australia, the term "matriculation" is seldom used now ...
from the same school and later went to
Quetta
Quetta (; ur, ; ; ps, کوټه) is the tenth List of cities in Pakistan by population, most populous city in Pakistan with a population of over 1.1 million. It is situated in Geography of Pakistan, south-west of the country close to the ...
. He obtained his F.A. from the Government Degree College, Quetta and B.A., and B.Ed. from the
University of Balochistan
The University of Balochistan (UB) (Urdu: جامعہ بلوچستان; Balochi: بلوچستان ء یونیورسٹی ), also known as Balochistan University, is a public university located in the downtown area of Quetta, Balochistan, Pakistan. ...
. He obtained his
Bachelor of Laws
Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...
legal practice
Legal practice is sometimes used to distinguish the body of judicial or administrative precedents, rules, policies, customs, and doctrines from legislative enactments such as statutes and constitutions which might be called "laws" in the strict s ...
in September 1981 and was subsequently appointed a legal advisor to Customs for
Makran Division
Makran Division (Baloch: مکران) is an administrative division of Balochistan Province, Pakistan. It is the eastern component of the larger Makran region shared between Pakistan and Iran, located in southern Balochistan along the Gulf of O ...
, and Makran Scout at
Turbat
Turbat is the second-largest city in Balochistan after Quetta and 38th largest city of Pakistan. It is the largest city in the southern part of the province.
Education
University:
University of TurbatBalochistan University of Engineering & ...
. He also served as a member of the Panel of Legal Advisors to PTCL Makran Division. Justice Meskanzai was appointed assistant advocate general for
Balochistan, Pakistan
Balochistan (; bal, بلۏچستان; ) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southwestern region of the country, Balochistan is the largest province of Pakistan by land area but is the least populated one. It shares land ...
where he remained in the office from June to December, 1998. He was then elected as vice chairman of the
Balochistan Bar Council
The Balochistan Bar Council is a statutory & deliberative assembly of lawyers in Balochistan for safeguarding the rights, interests and privileges of practicing lawyers, within Balochistan province of Pakistan. The Council also regulates the condu ...
from the 24 March 2005 to 24 March 2006.
Meskanzai was invited by International Lawyers Club United Kingdom to London as a chief guest in 2019. He remained a member of various judicial organizations such as the National Judicial Policy Making Committee,
Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan
The Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan (LJCP) is a statutory authority of the government of Pakistan established under the Law and Justice Commission Ordinance, 1979. It is responsible for the development and improvement of legal system in ...
, Advisory Board of Al Mizan Foundation, Council of Trustees & Selection Board of the International Islamic University Islamabad, Administration Committee of Al-Mizan Foundation, Board of Governors, and Board of Trustees.
In April 2022, he authored the landmark judgment that declared the
riba
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...
-based (
interest
In finance and economics, interest is payment from a borrower or deposit-taking financial institution to a lender or depositor of an amount above repayment of the principal sum (that is, the amount borrowed), at a particular rate. It is distinct ...
-based) banking system against the application of
Sharia in Pakistan
Since the early Islamic states of the eighth and ninth centuries, Sharia always existed alongside other normative systems.
Historically, sharia was interpreted by independent jurists ( muftis), based on Islamic scriptural sources and various lega ...
.
Death
Meskanzai was fatally shot inside a mosque when he was performing ISHA prayer in (Masjid Ayesha)
Balochistan
Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. ...
's Kharan area, on 14 October 2022. Kharan's Superintendent of Police Asif Halim told
Dawn News
Dawn News is one of Pakistan's 24-hour Urdu news channel. Based in Karachi, the station is a subsidiary of Pakistan Herald Publications Limited (PHPL), Pakistan's largest English-language media group.
The test transmission of the station occu ...
that unidentified assailants opened fire at him inside the mosque when he was performing ISHA prayer, which left Maskanzai gravely injured. He was taken to a nearby hospital, where he died of his injuries.
According to the Voice of America Urdu, the
Balochistan Liberation Army
The Balochistan Liberation Army ( bal, بلۏچستان آجوییء لشکر; abbreviated BLA), also known as the Baloch Liberation Army, is a Baloch ethnonationalist militant organization based in Afghanistan. The BLA's first recorded activi ...