PESHAWAR: Peshawar High Court Chief Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan has directed the provincial health and prison authorities to fill vacant posts of doctors in all prisons across the province and establish minor surgical units there to carry out emergency operations.

Chairing the seventh Provincial Justice Committee meeting here, the chief justice called for the establishment of the observation home and juvenile rehabilitation centres in all districts in line with the Juvenile Justice Act, 2018.

Chairs meeting of Provincial Justice Committee

The meeting was attended by high court registrar Khwaja Wajihuddin, most senior district and sessions judge Mohammad Asim Imam, advocate general Shumail Ahmed Butt, provincial police chief Moazzam Jah Ansari, special secretary for home department Akbar Ali Khan, law secretary Masood Ahmad, additional IG (prisons) Khalid Abbas Khan, director general (prosecution) Mukhtiar Ahmad, health secretary Syed Imtiaz Hussain Shah, deputy secretary for the Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan Rasool Larik and anti-corruption establishment director Usman Zaman.

The participants discussed agenda items.

The chairperson was informed about the implementation of the committee’s previous decisions.

The relevant officials said regular visits of the medical specialists to prisons across the province were ensured in compliance with the PJC’s decision and that visits would also be carried out to prisons in the merged tribal districts.

The special secretary of the home department said 40 kanals of land had been acquired for setting up an independent forensic science laboratory.

The chief justice said the FSL should cater to the long-term needs, so efforts should be made to increase the area to at least 80 kanals.

The officials shared progress on data integration process with the participants.

The chief justice said the data integration was a major step towards the transformation of data into meaningful and valuable information for the justice sector.

He directed the members to expedite data integration.

The members were further informed that in pursuance to the decision of the PJC, the home department had prepared a prototype offender management system for maintaining database of the convicted persons.

Also, the home department has issued a notification for the establishment of maal khanas at places identified by the district and sessions judges of Nowshera, Lakki Marwat, Charsadda, Hangu, Swat, Karak, Buner, Haripur, DI Khan, Abbottabad and Battagram, while the deputy commissioners of the other districts were asked about the availability of space for the establishment of maal khanas.

The committee was also informed that 24 probation officers had undergone training in compliance with the PJC’s decision for the capacity building of the justice sector’s departments.

The chief justice ordered the training of prosecutors and the sharing of a report about it with the PJC.

The forum approved the sharing of the common problems of the justice sector, including those in the merged tribal districts, with the PJC for policy decisions.

It also approved the establishment of the provincial court complex at all divisional headquarters to cater to the needs of the courts and accommodate the space requirements of the prosecution and probation department.

Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2021