The government is not considering any plan to replace deposed chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry after his reinstatement as being suggested by some media reports to replace him by Justice Flak Sher.
Minister of Law and Parliamentary Affairs, Farooq Naek on Wednesday stated this while meeting a delegation of lawyers from Islamabad Bar Association (IBA) who called on him at his office. Haroon Rasheed, President of the association led the delegation.
The issue of judiciary is in the limelight since March 2007, when chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry was first ousted, then reinstated on July 20, last year.
President Pervez Musharraf, on November 3, once again fired and detained the deposed judges including Iftikhar Chaudhry to protect his disputed presidency from legal wrangling. Unflinching faith of lawyers and pledges by the politicians resulted in Murree declaration that committed to reinstate the deposed judges along with restoration of pre-November 3 judiciary.
The minister said that the government is committed to Murree declaration and will reinstate the deposed judges in pursuance of the accord. He dispelled the impression of any disagreement among the coalition partners on the issue.
He said that the process for the restoration of deposed judges started the very day, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani took oath and ordered to release detained judges in his maiden speech.
He said that the government is not only striving to restore the deposed judges but also is working to revamp the judicial system in the country for an easy and speedy justice. A number of proposals are under consideration to improve the working of courts, and the ministry has initiated the process to amend National Accountability Bureau's Ordinance, he said.
While discussing the proposals, he said, we are making arrangements for the working of courts in the evening to settle backlog of cases without any further delay. The plan to set up an autonomous 'public defender office', headed by a retired judge and manned by the lawyers so that the poor could have an easy access to justice is also under consideration, he added.
The government is planning to undo the surety laws, which make it difficult for the poor to meet the requirements in order to get bails. In addition, the proviso that if a murder case is not decided within two years the accused will be eligible to get bail, would also be reintroduced, he added.
Haroon Rasheed told this scribe that the minister has assured the delegation saying parliament will resolve the issue amicably remaining loyal to the Murree declaration. He said that the minister has pledged to allocate funds for construction of lawyers' chambers at Islamabad High Court. The minister has also assured to address the issues being faced by the lawyers' community, he added.
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