MUZAFFARABAD: The district courts of Muzaffarabad were formally shifted to a newly constructed judicial complex on Thursday, ending months of speculation regarding the long-awaited relocation.

The state-of-the-art complex, built at a cost of Rs795 million under Azad Jammu and Kashmir’s (AJK) Annual Development Programme, is situated along the right bank of River Jhelum. It was inaugurated by AJK High Court Chief Justice Sadaqat Hussain Raja at a well-attended ceremony, which drew a large number of lawyers, judicial officers, sitting and former judges, as well as cabinet members and lawmakers.

Previously, the district courts had been housed in a block of the District Headquarters Complex— a structure built with Turkish assistance after the devastating 2005 earthquake. An entire floor of that building had also been allotted to the Central Bar Association.

Despite the relocation of judicial functions, there were strong indications that the lawyers’ community was unlikely to vacate the previous premises without a formal allocation.

In their speeches at the ceremony, some of the representatives of the legal fraternity had made demands that the building be permanently allotted to them for establishing lawyers’ chambers, along with the enactment of a lawyers’ protection law.

Endorsing both demands in his concluding speech, Chief Justice Raja urged the government to fulfill them, pointing out that they entailed no additional financial burden.

“Let me say it clearly: half of that building has already been given to the lawyers. There is no second opinion on that. Whether someone notifies it or not, I have already told the lawyers that the building is now theirs—provided they do not occupy more than fifty percent,” he said.

Expressing concern over the poor maintenance of public buildings, the chief justice warned that the vacated complex could also fall into disrepair without proper use or care.

He also lamented the common perception that investment in the legal sector was wasteful.

“Whenever it’s suggested that something be done for lawyers or for the Bar, the standard response is that it’s a waste of resources,” he said, addressing Legislative Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Latif Akbar, who was present at the event.

“But let me share a fact: AJK has 5,500 registered lawyers, more than 5,500 clerks working with them, and over 5,500 stamp vendors. This means over 20,000 people are directly employed by this profession,” he added.

“There is no other sector in the region that generates such employment while also contributing to state revenues. Yet spending on the judiciary and the legal community is still seen as extravagance, which is regrettable.”

Published in Dawn, April 25th, 2025