Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Yahya Afridi said on Monday that he always worked for the supremacy of the constitution. Chief Justice has expressed the commitment to work together with the bar to ensure speedy and accessible justice. Addressing the Judicial conference marking the commencement of the new judicial year in Islamabad on Monday, he mentioned that there were sixty thousand, six hundred and thirty-five cases pending in the Supreme Court a year ago. 

He said out of these, twenty-two thousand, eight hundred and sixty five cases have been decided. The pendency has been brought down to fifty-six thousand, nine hundred and forty three cases. The Chief Justice of Pakistan announced that any person who cannot afford a lawyer will be given free legal aid.Highlighting the reforms introduced, Yahya Afridi said that technology has been used to reduce the backlog of cases while making the judicial delivery processes more citizen centric.

He said the digitization of case files is underway and expected to be completed within six months. The Chief Justice of Pakistan said a dedicated anti-corruption hotline has been established providing a secure and confidential platform for citizens to report incidents of corruption. Public facilitation centers have also been established at the principal seat and the registries. Yahya Afridi said that the Supreme Court has also undergone an external audit and the issues highlighted are being addressed.  He said we have also initiated standarization of processes and quality assurance. 

The Chief Justice of Pakistan said that rules, policies and guidelines have been made to make the functioning of this court more transparent, consistent and fairer to those it serves. Expressing his views, Attorney General of Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan reaffirmed the commitment to uphold core values of justice, rule of law and constitutionalism. The Attorney General said our primary function is to serve the ordinary litigant. He said it is our collective duty to help the litigants with kindness and empathy. He said transparency is possible through abiding by the law and constitution.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)