LAHORE, May 24 (APP):Lahore High Court (LHC) Chief Ju
stice Malik Shahzad Ahmad Khan has asked judges of the district judiciary to work without any fear and greed.
Addressing the concluding ceremony of a pre-service training program for newly appointed judges at Punjab Judicial Academy on Friday, he appreciated the district judiciary for its hard work despite a shortage of judges.
He stated that 1.4 million cases were pending in the district judiciary of the province, whereas the number of serving judicial officers was 1,760, adding that there was a shortage of 800 judicial officers. He said that within the past three months, about 816,000 new cases were filed, whereas 825,000 cases were decided in the same period, which shows the judges’ performance despite limited resources.
He mentioned that it was necessary to utilize “video link” technology to reduce the number of pending cases. He said that soon video technology would be used for proceedings and recording of evidence in courts across Punjab, and judges should gain complete command over the use of information technology.
He further stated that the alternate dispute resolution system was not fully utilized in the country, emphasizing the importance of making more use of it.
The chief ju
stice said that the strike culture was a big reason for delays in cases. He mentioned that the district courts in Lahore were closed for 78 days fo
llowing lawyers’ strikes in the recent past, which badly affected people’s right to justice. He said that all judges of the Lahore High Court agreed that no more lockdowns of courts would be tolerated.
He noted that 90 percent of the lawyers were professional and suppor
ted ending the strike culture. He said that the Chief Ju
stice of Pakistan and judges of the Supreme Court played a leading role in discouraging the strike culture. He expressed hope that the strike culture would end.
Later, the chief ju
stice gave certificates to the judicial officers upon completion of their pre-service training.
Director
General Punjab Judicial Academy Abdul Sattar also addressed the ceremony.
LHC Registrar Abdul Rasheed Abid, Director
General Judicial and Case Management Tanvir Akbar, Sessions Judge Human Resource Majid Ali Awan, Director
General District Judiciary Abher Gul Khan, and others also attended the ceremony.
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