Improved Justice System First Step Towards Welfare State: AJK President

Improved justice system first step towards welfare state: AJK president

Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Sardar Masood Khan has appreciated efforts of the judiciary to ensure the rule of law as well as stability and transparency of the accountability system in the liberated territory, and said that the pendency had registered a visible decline as a result of efforts made to administer early and inexpensive justice to the people

MUZAFFARABAD (Pakistan Point News - 20th Mar, 2020) Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Sardar Masood Khan has appreciated efforts of the judiciary to ensure the rule of law as well as stability and transparency of the accountability system in the liberated territory, and said that the pendency had registered a visible decline as a result of efforts made to administer early and inexpensive justice to the people.

He said this after Acting Chief Justice of Azad Jammu and Kashmir High Court Justice Azhar Salim Babar presented the annual report of the high court for the year 2019 to him here on Friday.

The AJK president said that early and inexpensive justice to the people was the first step towards establishing a welfare state, and hopefully, the stat judiciary will continue its efforts to further improve justice system in the state. "The judiciary owes the heavy responsibility of providing justice and ensuring protection of the rights of the common folk," he said and added that only a strong and active judiciary can play its role in establishing the writ of law in the society.

Speaking on the occasion, the acting Chief Justice Azhar Salim Babar said that after taking the oath of the office of acting chief justice on 16 November 2019, he had introduced a foolproof monitoring system for the district and other lower judiciary, which had pulled down the pendency graph. He said that judgments of 620 cases in February including nine murder cases, had not only improved the justice system but also enhance people's confidence in it.

He said that the people of the state particularly the litigating fraternity had attached great expectations with the state judiciary, and we are fully trying to come up to their expectations. He said that in 2019, several important steps related to district and the lower judiciary were taken, and he had encouraged the appointment of all civil judges, court officers and non-judicial staff through NTS system to ensure transparency in the process.

The performance report of the high court for the year 2019 reveals that 49,000 of 90,143 cases pending in the district courts of Muzaffarabad. Nine of 14 cases of murder were decided in the courts of Neelum district. Similarly, 26 of a total of 98 cases of murder were decided by the district courts of Bhimbar. Besides, 45 of 102 cases of murder have been decided by the district courts of Mirpur. The district courts of Kotli disposed of 41 of 112 cases of murder, while 26 of a total of 41 cases of murder had been decided by the district courts of Pullundri. In all 45 of 90 cases of murder were resolved in Rawalakot, while nine of15 cases were disposed of by district courts in Haveli, while only 16 of 28 cases were decided.