FCC moves to Shariat Court building

ISLAMABAD:

The Federal Constitutional Court (FCC), set up under the 27th Constitutional Amendment, has formally shifted to the Federal Shariat Court (FSC) building in Islamabad, officials said on Monday.

Chief Justice Aminuddin Khan inaugurated the new premises along with other judges.

Three benches of the FCC have already started hearing cases at the FSC building, including a three-member bench headed by the chief justice that is taking up super tax cases. Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar and Attorney General Mansoor Usman Awan also attended the inauguration.

Renovation work at the FSC building, which had continued for several weeks, has now been completed. With the relocation of the FCC, the Federal Shariat Court will now operate from the Islamabad High Court (IHC) building.

The FCC had begun functioning on November 18 from temporary arrangements at the IHC. More than 45 days after its formation, the court has now moved to its permanent location. A notification issued on December 11 had confirmed that the FCC would operate from the FSC building, while the FSC would shift to the IHC.

The arrangement was part of the original plan for the newly formed constitutional court, but the move was delayed due to objections raised by judges of the Federal Shariat Court. During the interim period, several FCC judges, including Chief Justice Khan, continued working from chambers located in the Supreme Court building.

Despite settling into permanent premises, the FCC continues to face logistical hurdles, particularly a shortage of staff. The Supreme Court has approved the transfer of only 20 officials to support the court's functioning. In addition, 40 judicial officers have been transferred from the Punjab judiciary, and some retired Supreme Court officials have been inducted.

Of the total 56,608 cases, 22,910 have been transferred to the FCC from the Supreme Court.