The National Assembly Standing Committee on Law and Justice Wednesday passed the 'Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2019' seeking to ensure expeditious disposal of cases without compromising the fundamental right to fair trial.
The committee met with MNA Riaz Fatyana in the chair and approved the proposed amendment, moved by the government, in the existing Code of Civil Procedure.
Minister of Law and Justice Farogh Naseem while briefing the committee about the bill said that civil cases mostly take 30 to 40 years to be decided by civil courts due to shortcomings in the existing Code of Civil Procedure.
"The existing Code of Civil Procedure is British made law which has become outdated," he said, adding that following the approval of amendments in the existing law, civil cases will be decided within six months or a year.
Naseem said that in civil litigation, practice normally occurs when a party files a suit accompanied by an injunction/stay application, and the main suit does not proceed. The court only focuses on the stay application and it takes many years to decide the stay application and lift the main case, he said.
He said that in order to control delay in disposal of cases, a new concept of two-tier system has been introduced where two different judges will hear the entire suit (the stay and main case). In the first tier, the main case would be heard by one judge and it is not going to be interrupted till finalisation of the proceedings, he said, adding if there are miscellaneous applications, such as stay application, these are going to be heard in the second tier where a separate file is going to be opened and heard by a different judge without interfering the main case.
The minister said that reforms are also proposed with regard to filing of complaint, service of summons, filing of written statement, case management system, commission for recording evidence, appeal, introduction of spot checking by presiding officer and limiting unnecessary discretion of courts, restricting granting adjournments and subjecting the parties at fault with heavy penalties in the shape of costs.
Majority of the committee members, including MNA Mehmood Bashir Virk of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), MNA Muhammad Sanaullah Khan Mastikhel of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), MNA Malik Muhammad Ehsan Ullah Tiwana of PTI, MNA Muhammad Farooq Azam Malik of PTI, MNA Attaullah of PTI, MNA Lal Chand of PTI, MNA Maleeka Ali Bokhari of PTI supported the bill except MNA Nafeesa Shah of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and MNA Aliya Kamran of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F).
Mehmood Bashir Virk said that there is no fault of procedure in delay in disposal of case but the fault lies in characters. "In the proposed amendment, efforts have been made to control the character," he said, adding that he supports the bill.
Nafeesa Shah while opposing the bill said that the concept of introduction of two-tier system would further delay the cases instead of expediting the disposal of civil cases. "Under the new concept, the main case could to be heard by one judge and stay application would be heard by another judge. Would it be easy for litigants?" she asked, saying that she completely opposes this provision and the reform proposed for service of summons.
Naseem while replying to objection raised by the PPP MNA said, "If some body does not want to accept the proposal then what can I say? She has an agenda."
On this, the PPP MNA asked the minister, "Let me know what my agenda is. The minister should take back his words."
The law minister said that he will not take his words back. Addressing the PPP MNA, the minister said, "Your agenda is to stop government from passing any bill."
The committee also considered the 'Child Marriage Restraint (Amendment) Bill, 2019' moved by MNA Dr Ramesh Kumar Vankwani, and after detailed deliberations the parliamentary body recommended with majority that the bill may not be passed by the National Assembly.
Chairman Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) Dr Qibla Ayaz said that marriage in Islam is linked with puberty and no legislation could be made regarding the matter.
However, there is complete consensus in the CII that early child marriages should not be encouraged and religious scholars, universities and people from different walks of life should create awareness against early marriages.
He also said that the registration of marriage should be linked with computerised national identity card (CNIC), while marriage should not be linked with CNIC.
PPP MNA Nafeesa Shah supported the bill. The committee was briefed by the home department of the Punjab about the report of the judicial commission regarding terrorist attack on Sri-Lankan cricket team in Lahore. The committee deferred the said agenda with direction to the representative of the home department and Establishment Division that the officers/officials named in the report be taken to task and disciplinary proceedings as per concerned efficiency and discipline rules be initiated against them at the earliest under intimation to this committee.
The parliamentary body was also briefed about the incident of murder of judges in District Jail Sialkot. The committee showed dissatisfaction and displeasure over the briefing, response and poor performance/action of the police department of the Punjab.
The committee also deferred the said agenda with direction to the representative of the home department of the Punjab and Establishment Division that officers/officials responsible for the said incident shall be taken to task and disciplinary proceedings as per concerned efficiency and discipline rules be initiated against them at the earliest under intimation to the committee.