PHC disposes of 33,774 cases in 2025
The Peshawar High Court (PHC) has marked a major milestone in judicial efficiency by disposing of 33,774 cases in 2025, while district courts across Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa cleared over 250,000 cases.
Over the past five years, the high court has eliminated nearly all backlog cases, reducing them to fewer than 1,000.
To prevent future delays, PHC has launched a new 20252030 judicial policy targeting 100 per cent disposal of new cases, with each court required to maintain a monthly clearance rate of 110 per cent. The policy also emphasizes judge training, merit-based promotions, and recruitment to strengthen judicial capacity.
PHC Registrar Muhammad Zaib Khan, speaking at a press conference attended by key officials including Member Inspection Team Salahuddin and Additional Registrar Abdul Jabbar, said the policy follows the vision of Chief Justice SM Atiq Shah for swift and timely justice.
Under the initiative, three evening courts have been established across the province, alongside a dedicated inheritance court.
Data shared by Zaib Khan highlights the progress: PHC started 2025 with 37,505 pending cases, now reduced to 35,000, while 32,224 new cases were registered this year. District courts saw pending cases fall from 253,539 to 223,748, registering 486,000 new cases and resolving 527,762, achieving a disposal rate of 108.6 per cent. Family courts also recorded a disposal rate exceeding 105 per cent, with over 24,000 cases resolved.
PHC aims to eliminate over 900 remaining backlog cases and maintain a 100 per cent disposal rate for new filings. To address judicial vacancies, the provincial government removed the two-year bar on legal practice for civil judge appointments, with newly appointed judges undergoing nearly a year of rigorous training and examinations.
PHC is modernizing judicial operations by integrating Artificial Intelligence, digitizing over 36,000 high court files and 186,340 district court files, and introducing an autofixation system for hearing dates. Video-link hearings have covered more than 215,000 cases in 2025 alone, while CCTV cameras are being installed for monitoring court proceedings.