Rawalpindi’s first evening court pronounces verdict on inaugural day

Creation of court welcomed by lawyers and litigants alike

RAWALPINDI: Following directives from the Lahore High Court (LHC) Chief Justice Anwarul Haq, the first evening family court started work at the Rawalpindi Judicial Complex on Wednesday.

The decision has been welcomed by the large crowd of lawyers and litigants who had gathered at the court. They hoped that the court would not only enhance the speed of the judicial process but would also help reduce the massive backlog of cases in the court.

Judge Zahid Farid has been appointed as the first adjudicator of the new evening court. The court’s senior reader Nadeem Altaf told Daily Express that the court will operate daily from 2pm until 7pm.

On the first day — rather evening — the court was scheduled to hear 16 cases, he said. Altaf added that the court also announced a verdict in one of the cases.

The case was one of visitation rights. Wasim Ullah had petitioned the court to direct the mother of his three children, Neelum Shaukat, to allow him to meet his children. The court approved the request and directed Shaukat to allow Wasim to meet his children in the second week of every month in the courthouse.

Both sides agreed to the decision. Apart from making the evening courts operational, a new set of sofas, heater and air conditioners have been installed in the court to facilitate litigants.

The court provides the ideal solution to those employees who cannot obtain leaves from the jobs during the day to attend court hearings.



Moreover, Altaf said that those litigants, whose cases are being heard during the day, can have their cases transferred to the evening court.

Lawyers Masood Shah, Samina Bukhari lauded the step move said that it will make it easy for litigants to attend hearings, for parents to meet their children since the former will not have to take leave from work while the latter will not have to skip school.

Moreover, they hoped that cases will be wrapped up sooner than before, providing the public swift resolution to their problems.

The lawyers added that the arrangements made in the court provided a more homely feel to the courts.

Female litigants Shehnaz Bibi and Fehmida expressed their joy at seeing the improved environment at the evening family court.

All family courts should be provided with the similar home-like environment, they demanded, adding that the addition of the court would help provide women with justice. 

Published in The Express Tribune, December 20^th, 2018.