ISLAMABAD, Sept 23: Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice (CJP) Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry has said actions could be taken against judges, magistrates and court officials on misconduct if evidence is provided against them.

People should come forward with charges of corruption or misconduct against judges, magistrates and court officials by providing evidence, the CJP said in a statement issued here on Saturday.

The apex court follows constitutional and legal norms in dealing with an accused person in accordance with the system of rule of law and due process, the CJ said, adding that the media was playing a useful and constructive role in revealing and depicting wrongs in the society and agonies suffered by the people.

There are frequent comments on the role and performance of public sector organisations such as law-enforcement agencies, judiciary, health and education sectors, and some NGOs and human rights activists have taken upon themselves to report acts and incidence of injustice or discrimination for action.

“I receive considerable mail to this effect and try to initiate action to prevent the abuse of law or misuse of authority,” he observed.

“Our motto is ‘Justice for All’, and we will facilitate the weaker sections of population and the deprived people to have access to justice to realize their rights and secure redress of their grievances,” the CJP said.

In this regard, a complaint cell has also been established in the apex court to ensure that any order given or scripture passed against a judicial officer or public functionary gets implemented, he said.

Some groups and organisations try to depict an extremely bleak scenario of the working of public sector organisations, including the judiciary, but, most often, the allegation was not backed by any concrete evidence.

A perennial problem of the justice sector has been inadequacy of the resources, resulting in shortage of judicial officers, court staff and dearth of infrastructure facilities and equipment for courts.

However, the chief justice expressed his satisfaction that now the government was doing all it could to provide funds to support and strengthen the judiciary, in particular subordinate judiciary.

Meanwhile, Justice Rana Bhagwandas, the senior most judge of the Supreme Court, urged upon the additional district and sessions judges to work hard with integrity, impartiality and commitment, and provide justice in accordance with the law.

Justice Bhagwandas was speaking as a chief guest at a ceremony held to award certificates to 15 additional district and sessions judges from the Punjab after completion of eight week pre-service training course at the Federal Judicial Academy here on Saturday.

Honesty, integrity and commitment are a must for administering justice, he said.

Earlier, FJA Director-General Moazzam Hayat presented the welcome speech and gave overview of the training course.