The one 'good news'

Addressing a judicial event in Islamabad recently, Chief Justice of Pakistan Asif Saeed Khosa noted that all news these days depressing whether related to parliamentary proceedings, the economy, international relations, or cricket. In this depressing atmosphere, he said, the judiciary is the one place from where some good news is coming. That may sound a bit boastful, but the CJP has a lot to be self-satisfied about, and take credit for it, too. He has kept his promise to "build a dam against undue and unnecessary delays in judicial determination of cases" and of initiating some other reforms. The model courts introduced by him have decided as many as 5,800 cases involving murder and narcotics-related cases in just 48 working days. The apex court also disposed of in a week's time several cases in e-trials with litigants and lawyer sitting in Karachi, without any hitch or adjournment, saving a lot of time and expenses for those involved. The experience can go a long way in improving delivery of justice to people in the other provinces as well.
The idea of model courts is to be expanded further. At its upcoming meeting on June 24, the Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan is scheduled to discuss the details of a plan to establish model courts for civil cases, family matters, rent issues, magistrate courts, as well as gender-based violence courts and child courts in all 116 districts of the country. Part of the plan is also to appoint judges trained exclusively to hear gender discrimination and child abuse cases. This cannot be welcomed enough for, as the CJP pointed out, women are not given fair treatment in regular courts. Cases of discrimination are often hushed up, and the general atmosphere in courts is too embarrassing for women and discouraging for children to pursue litigation. The proposed courts are to be "designed to look entirely different both in their infrastructure and working than the other courts," said the top adjudicator. Furthermore, high courts are to set up dedicated courts for lawsuits concerning revenue, banking or tax matters.
All that sounds great. Model courts are in vogue in other countries as well. However, as regards the emphasis on expeditious disposal of cases, it is a challenging task. Fast tracking of the legal process does not necessarily serve the ends of justice. In fact as a legal maxim goes, justice hurried is justice buried. Judges in the subordinate judiciary are already known to pay little attention to due process. A few months ago, the apex court had to admonish a lower court judge for sentencing a person without following the required identification procedure. Under pressure for quick dispensation of justice, they may neglect important rules and procedures. The apex court, nonetheless, has set up a system to help judges, especially in the lower judiciary, to make queries before adjudicating. That may act as a vigilance of sorts. The judicial reforms under way are expected to effectively address the pendency problem as well as other common ills identified by Justice Khosa, such as frivolous litigation, false testimonies, and fake witnesses which contribute to inordinate delays in case determination, often times resulting in denial of justice.