SHC CJ asks Sindh govt to confer special powers to 15 additional judges for three months. PHOTO: EXPRESS/Rashid Ajmeri
Complying with Supreme Court (SC) orders, the Sindh High Court (SHC) Chief Justice has decided to increase the number of special anti-terrorism courts (ATCs) in Karachi from three to 18 on an emergency basis to tackle the deteriorating law and order in the provincial capital.
In its interim order on the Abbas Town suo motu case on Friday, the larger bench of the SC took notice of the slow disposal of terrorism-related cases in Karachi and directed the establishment of 15 to 20 more ATCs in the city.
On Saturday, SHC Chief Justice Mushir Alam forwarded a list of the names of 15 additional district and sessions judges to the Sindh government, asking it to confer special powers to them for three months to try and punish suspects involved in terrorism, target killings and other offences within the ambit of the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997.
The step will increase the number of ATCs in Karachi to 18 from the three that exist currently. The judges – namely Naseem Mansoor, Shazia Latif Unnar, Rashida Siddiqui, Shahid Hussain Chandio, Ikram Durrani, Tariq Mehmood Khoso, Irfan Ahmed Mayo, Abdul Naeem Memon, Zahida Sikandar, Saddaf Yousuf, Munawar Sultana, Amna Nazeer Leghari, Nadeem Ahmed Khan and Suraiya Mehboob – will enjoy the special powers until the lengthy process of appointing new judges to the newly established ATCs is completed.
Meanwhile, Sindh Advocate General Abdul Fattah Malik has asked the Sindh Chief Secretary to suspend 14 policemen and all other officers in various government departments who were appointed on contract in violation of the Sindh Civil Servants Act, as per SC’s observation in the Abbas Town suo motu case.
The 14 policemen appointed on contract include Deputy Inspector (DIG) General Salman Syed Muhammad, DIG Rasool Bux Saand, DIG Shaukat Ali Shah and Special Branch DIG Nadeemullah Qazi. (WITH ADDITIONAL INPUT FROM APP)
Published in The Express Tribune, March 10th, 2013.
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Increasing number of courts would help speedy disposal of trials. Karachi is huge. Each of the 18 towns be upgraded to a district and Karachi be made into three commissionarates. London which is one third of Karachi's population has 34 districts and local governments.