Governing Pata: PHC directs govt to retract judicial powers from Malakand district admin

PESHAWAR:

The Peshawar High Court has directed the provincial government to make suitable amendments in Nizam-e-Adl 2009 to retrieve judicial powers from the district administrations in Malakand Division and hand them to judicial magistrates within six months.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth and Justice Irshad Qaiser issued the orders while disposing of six petitions against the Nizam-e-Adl Regulation 2009 on Wednesday. The previous federal government had imposed the act in the division’s Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (Pata) in a bid to quell militancy six years ago.



Dr Adnan Khan, one of the petitioners, informed the court under the implemented framework, DCs and ACs assumed powers of district magistrates and sub-divisional magistrates respectively. He added the ruling violates the Constitution which explicitly states the judiciary will be independent of administrative duties.

Violations

“Under Article 175 (3), the judiciary should be separated progressively from the executive within 14 years from the commencing day. Under the (Nizam-e-Adl) regulation, executives are working as judicial officers,” the petition reads. Khan said the separation could only have been done until 1987 because the Constitution was passed in 1973.

Explaining the violation, Khan said Article 203 binds all subordinate judicial systems under the supervision of a high court. However, the DCs and ACs are independent of the supervision, he noted.

People’s demand?

During his arguments, Additional Attorney General Syed Attique Shah told the court the regulation was the need of the time, imposed with the consent of locals who themselves demanded it. He assured the court the ruling has helped the division’s residents and requested the dismissal of the petitions.

Upon hearing the arguments, the court ordered suitable amendments in Nizam-e-Adl and retracting of judicial powers resting with the administration.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2015.