District court records lost in fire

The two-room office contained record of court employees of Rawalpindi district and the daily record of process.

RAWALPINDI:


Records of the district court Nazarat Branch were completely lost in a fire that was apparently ignited by an electric short-circuit here on Sunday, Rescue 1122 said.


The fire started at about 10am and burnt the office of the civil nazir (record keeper). The office kept records of summons, process servers, court notifications and the service record of the court’s staff.


The short-circuit happened in the adjacent bathroom that led to the main office, Rescue 1122 officials said. Before they could hose down the fire, the wood and iron cupboards that contained the record files, five computers and two printers were burnt, an official of the rescue team told The Express Tribune.

The two-room office, built in the 1860s, contained the record of court employees of the Rawalpindi district as well as the daily record of process servers intimating the parties about their litigations.

An employee, who was trying to save something from the debris, said that of the burnt items the most valuable record was the service books of the court staff that contained their job history. These records helped the employees at retirement, he said.

District and Sessions Judge Nazeer Ahmed Gajana visited the burnt office. After examining the damage, he assured the staff that the wiring of the building will be replaced.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 27th, 2011.
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