Ex-judge deplores dismal state of district court

Around 150 people visit the building that has been declared inoperable

ISLAMABAD:

Every morning at Islamabad’s district Kachehri, a model court and five other court sessions are held inside a building that is almost on the verge of collapse, after it sustained considerable damage during an earthquake.

The revelation was made by a recently-resigned judge, Jawad Hussain Adil, who told The Express Tribune that the building in question had been declared inoperable.

The former judge informed that litigants also visit the building daily, while a record room was also present within it.

According to Adil, any renovation work in the block can pose a threat to the building that has cracked open in places.

The former judge told that around 150 people visit the same building daily, adding that the condition of buildings and washrooms at the Islamabad sessions and district court was abysmal.

The judge’s statement highlighted the need to renovate the shabby buildings, not only to avert any imminent disaster but also to preserve records.

Giving his two cents on the matter of alleged pressure on judges, Adil claimed that senior judges assert their authority over junior colleagues.

Elaborating the statement, the judge said that high court orders them to wind up cases in a month that actually require 10 to 15 trials to be adjudicated.

The ex-judge said that he worked without a chamber for more than two years, dealing with cases in a small room which easily used to fill up with suspects and other attendees.

The ex-judge also recalled an incident involving the son of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Nayyar Bukhari, in which he had a scuffle with an on-duty policeman.

Adil, who was then the magistrate of the Margalla court, said the SHO had fearfully requested him to sign the arrest warrant of the suspect at that time.

“I did not think for a second and signed the warrant. I went to my senior who was watching the news on television when the news had spread,” he remembered.

The former judge said he was then inquired regarding the matter.

“I told my senior that the PPP leader’s son had slapped a policeman today and he would be shooting people tomorrow without fearing consequences,” said Adil.

The senior judge lauded the “courageous act”, said the former magistrate.

Reflecting further on the dismal state of courts, Adil confessed that the presence of touts in the courts was a reality, however, the reasons behind it must not be ignored.

“How much does the government pay the police for an investigation?” he stated, lamenting that the staff of the lower courts does not get any training unlike their counterparts serving the high courts.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 23^rd, 2020.