PESHAWAR: On the call of Pakistan Bar Council, the lawyers’ community on Wednesday observed boycott of courts across the province, including the provincial capital, against placing of restrictions by the National Judicial (Policy Making) Committee on the powers of judicial officers while acting as ‘ex-officio justice of peace’.

The PBC had on Tuesday announced a two-day strike across the country against the decision. The strike will continue on Thursday.

The lawyers mostly stayed away from courts and vowed to resist the move of the NJPMC, which in its recent meeting had made certain decisions regarding the powers exercised by the district and sessions judges under section 22-A and 22-B of Code of Criminal Procedure.

Litigants mostly appeared themselves before the relevant courts in their respective cases. Most of the cases in different courts were adjourned due to non-availability of lawyers.

The districts and sessions judges and additional district and sessions judges have been exercising powers of ‘justice of peace’ under section 22-A (6) and 25 of CrPC since an amendment was made in the law in 2002. Under the said provision these judicial officers are empowered to order registration of an FIR over a complaint if the concerned police officer declined to register the same. They can also order transfer of investigation of a case from one police officer to another.

The NJPMC in its recent meeting had resolved that since a Police Complaint Redressal Mechanism, as per recommendations of the Police Reforms Committee, had been operationalised at district level in all over Pakistan, which is headed by SP complaints, therefore, applications under section 22-A of CrPC may not be entertained by the courts unless accompanied by decision of the relevant district SP complaints.

Published in Dawn, March 21st, 2019

Opinion

Editorial

Trump 2.0
Updated 07 Nov, 2024

Trump 2.0

It remains to be seen how his promises to bring ‘peace’ to Middle East reconcile with his blatantly pro-Israel bias.
Fait accompli
07 Nov, 2024

Fait accompli

A SLEW of secretively conceived and hastily enacted legislation has achieved its intended result: the powers of the...
IPP contracts
07 Nov, 2024

IPP contracts

THE government expects the ongoing ‘negotiations’ with power producers aimed at revising the terms of sovereign...
Rushed legislation
Updated 06 Nov, 2024

Rushed legislation

For all its stress on "supremacy of parliament", the ruling coalition has wasted no opportunity to reiterate where its allegiances truly lie.
Jail reform policy
06 Nov, 2024

Jail reform policy

THE state is making a fresh attempt to improve conditions in Pakistan’s penitentiaries by developing a national...
BISP overhaul
06 Nov, 2024

BISP overhaul

IT has emerged that the spouses of over 28,500 Sindh government employees have been illicitly benefiting from BISP....