LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) has sought recommendations from all district & sessions judges of Punjab on a proposal of holding double shifts in the lower courts to clear the huge backlog of cases.

The director general of the Directorate of District Judiciary at the LHC has written a letter to all session judges seeking their input on double shifts.

The letter mentioned that Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Yahya Afridi, being chairman of the National Judicial Policy-Making Committee, wanted to initiate double shifts of the courts to reduce the number of pending cases and clear the backlog.

“You are, therefore, required to provide your input about the feasibility of the proposal as well as the option of all judicial officers who are volunteering to work in an extra shift,” the letter said, asking the sessions judges to submit their reports by next week.

The sources say the primary objective of the proposal is to address the backlog of cases as nearly 1.4m cases are currently pending in the lower courts of Punjab.

A similar suggestion was also made during the tenure of former chief justice Manzoor Ahmad Malik.

Rana Intezar Hussain, a former president of Lahore Bar Association, claims the double-shift program is bound to fail, saying if the chief justice genuinely wants it to succeed, the support of the executive is essential.

In a statement, he says the people should not have to resort to the courts as the entire backlog is a result of executive inefficiency. He says the government authorities are responsible for 80pc of legal disputes.

According to the LBA leader, the district judiciary needs to be strengthened by providing it with confidence and resources rather than constantly intimidating or pressuring it.

Published in Dawn, February 9th, 2025