Depleted bench: NGO moves SHC over delay in naming judges

SHC has sanctioned strength of 42 judges but right now only 16 are working and 24 need to be appointed.

KARACHI:

A constitutional petition was filed here on Thursday before the Sindh High Court over the delay in naming judges.

The petition was filed by Syed Mehmood Akhtar Naqvi of the Human Rights Commission of South Asia (not to be confused with the HRCP). He argued that the SHC has a sanctioned strength of 42 judges but right now only 16 are working and 24 need to be appointed.

The petitioner maintained that each day hundreds of cases were fixed before the division benches at the principal seat of Karachi and circuit benches but only one-fourth or less are being heard.

The benches are overburdened and the judges are overworked as they had to work till late.

The dispensation of justice is being obstructed due to the shortage and litigants are suffering the most, he said.

He requested the court to direct the authorities to appoint competent judges, expedite the process of transparently and on merit so that people had the benefit of an independent judiciary.

The petition is likely to be heard next week.

On September 8, the home department appointed the district and sessions judges as judges for the anti-terrorism courts (ATCs) in several districts, for the next two and a half years.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 15^th, 2011.