Prompt justice still remained a far cry in outgoing 2021

Despite brisk disposal of cases by the Lahore High Court and lower judiciary in Punjab, the backlog of under-trial cases cannot be reduced, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

According to sources, the number of cases in the Lahore High Court alone has reached 170,000 while as many as 1,300,000 cases are still under trial in the lower courts in Lahore and other cities of Punjab.

All tall claims of the present government regarding the provision of prompt justice dashed to the ground. 

The outdated judiciary system still remained prevalent in year 2021. The hopes of timely justice still remained a far cry for the petitioners and solicitors.

The under-trial cases have stockpiled reaching 170,000 in the LHC and 1.3 million cases are still awaiting their disposal in the lower judiciary in Punjab.

The lawyers are of the view that submission of new cases is the main reason behind amassing of under-trial cases in the courts. Besides this, the dearth of judges is another cause of the slow disposal of cases. 

Sources said 750 seats of judges are vacant in the lower courts and 12 seats are empty in the higher judiciary.

The number of judges in the LHC should be 60 whereas at present only 40 judges are working. The lower judiciary is facing a shortage of 150 additional sessions judges and more than 600 civil judges. 

Sources said it is expected that since there will be no lockdown in the country anymore, the courts could speed up the disposal of under-trial cases. Besides this, the caseload could be reduced by filling the vacant posts of judges. 

Reporter Malik Ashraf