LAHORE, June 4: Complaint cell of the Lahore High Court (LHC) is redressing the grievances of the lawyers and litigants against court officials on a priority basis, besides taking notice of malpractices of other departments and injustices committed in the society.

According to a handout, so far the cell has received 68 complaints, out of them 41 are against LHC officials, 18 against the subordinate judiciary officials and nine miscellaneous.

Chief Justice Sayed Zahid Husain announced the establishment of the cell on assuming his office on January 1 this year and it became functional within two weeks. The cell is aimed at defending lawyers and the litigant public against corrupt officers and officials of the LHC and the subordinate judiciary of the province.

The cell also provides an in-built mechanism for accountability of LHC administration. It takes into account the allegations leveled in the complaints and those of serious nature are promptly placed before the chief justice.

The Member Inspection Team (MIT) office remains primary organ to process the complaints against judicial officers but the serious allegations are investigated by the Cell. The complaints are normally received by post, but the complainants may also visit the cell.

The cell is conducting disciplinary proceedings against some court officials for accepting gratifications.