ISLAMABAD, Sept 1: Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry said on Saturday that no one would now be able to violate the verdicts of the courts as they enjoyed public confidence and trust.
The chief justice was talking to delegations of the Free Legal Aid Committee of the Pakistan Bar Council and Lahore High Court Bar Association’s Multan and Bahawalpur Benches.
He said the decisions given by the superior courts were public property. The 160 million people of Pakistan were the custodians of the courts’ decisions and they would ensure that the verdicts were implemented in true spirit, Justice Iftikhar observed.
In reply to a question regarding shortage of judges, the chief justice said all appointments to the higher judiciary should be made on merit and in a transparent manner.
He said there was no delay on the part of the Supreme Court and he would ask the government to take necessary action in this regard and appoint judges as soon as possible.
According to a press release, he said that a case of appointments in the Sindh High Court had come to the Supreme Court, it had been processed and soon the judges would be appointed.
Elaborating on suo motu actions in cases of public interest, the chief justice said that high courts and district and sessions courts would be utilised to provide relief to the common man. “But there are some legal issues which are being looked into to improve the system,” he said.
He said society had shown trust and faith in the lawyers’ movement and even people from remote areas participated in it. “The responsibility upon you has doubled due to the trust and confidence bestowed upon you by the society and you have to ensure that services provided by you are effective and efficient,” he remarked while referring to quick disposal of cases in the lower courts.
He said the issue of disposal of cases affected the common man and it needed to be looked into very seriously.
He said the bar and the bench should work together to provide services to the people.
Earlier, the presidents of the PBC’s Free Legal Aid Committee and LHCBA, Multan Bench and Bahawalpur Bench, appreciated the role of the civil society in the lawyers’ movement and assured the chief justice that they would fully participate in his mission to provide justice to the poor people.
