KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Tuesday introduced the e-Court facility enabling a judge in Karachi to conduct online proceedings and allowing the parties concerned to advance their arguments from Umerkot through a video link.

Justice Mohammad Faisal Kamal Alam heard two departmental appeals, filed by former court employees of district Umerkot, at SHC’s principal seat in Karachi, while the two sides argued the matter through a video link from the district and sessions court, Umerkot.

The online hearing was conducted in the appeals filed by ex-reader Meva Ram Meghwar and former junior clerk Kelash Kumar as they were dismissed from services by the district and sessions judge.

Earlier, the SHC registrar had asked the district and sessions judge of Umerkot to direct the appellants and departmental representatives to participate in the online proceedings through a video link along with the relevant record.

A court official said it was a landmark initiative of the SHC to introduce online judicial proceedings through video link, although it’s still on an experimental basis.

With a view to effectuate and broaden the implementation of the e-court concept, the SHC had already taken up that matter on the administrative side to work out the modalities for e-service and e-court proceedings, he added.

In Pakistan, the concept of e-Court facility or online judicial proceedings through a video link was introduced by the Supreme Court in May 2019, as the apex court used the technology for prompt dispensation of justice and connected its four registries at the provincial capitals with its principal seat in the Islamabad.

Published in Dawn, November 30th, 2022