Trial courts must record testimony verbatim: SC

ISLAMABAD:

The Supreme Court has ruled that trial courts are under a legal and constitutional obligation to record a witness's testimony verbatim and promptly rectify any errors, observing that fair trial and transparent judicial proceedings require an accurate record of evidence.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail and Justice Salahuddin Panhwar issued the detailed reasons for its short order in criminal petitions filed by Mst. Nayab, setting aside the orders of the trial court and the Sindh High Court Circuit Bench, Hyderabad.

The court observed that procedural law was a means to achieve justice, not an obstacle to it.

According to the judgment, the petitioner was a prosecution witness in FIR No. 33/2018 registered at a police station in Jacobabad district. Her testimony had been recorded through a video link. However, after obtaining a certified copy of her statement, she discovered several material errors and inconsistencies, including the incorrect recording of the date of the incident as May 30, 2018 instead of May 31, 2018, along with discrepancies in the cross-examination and other portions of the statement.