ISLAMABAD, May 25: Chief Commissioner Tariq Mehmood Pirzada has divided the federal capital territory into two “Sessions Divisions” to facilitate the litigants of the territory.
In effect, the notification issued by him in terms of the Islamabad High Court Act 2010, means that there will now be two sessions' courts instead of one to deal with the mounting legal disputes in the federal territory.
It also means that the political move to bifurcate the territory into two districts for the purpose has been shelved for the time being, if not for good.
Presently Islamabad is a single district and the creation of the two sessions divisions just a technical matter. It will not cause any administrative change like establishment of separate offices for the second district, appointment of officials and separation of services being provided to people by the local administration.
The newly created sessions' divisions will be called Islamabad West and Islamabad East.
According to the notification, Islamabad West will comprise all residential sectors, all municipal limits, union council Shah Allah Ditta, Saidpur, Noorpur Shahan and areas falling on the western side of Murree Road starting from Faizabad and leading towards Bhara Kahu.
Islamabad East will contain 12 union councils of Rawat, Sihala, Koral, Tarlai, Bhara Kahu, Kirpa, Chirah, Sohan, Kurri, Tumair and Phulgran (villages of Ojri and Malpur).
Chief Commissioner Pirzada said offices of the new sessions court would be ready soon.
“The existing offices of the lower judiciary are narrow, confined and always overcrowded due to the large number of cases being heard every day. The opening of the new courts will go a long way in mitigating this rush and facilitating people,” he told Dawn.
Prominent lawyer and former deputy attorney general Supreme Court Shah Khawar Advocate termed creation of two session divisions a good decision saying it will help in the speedy dispensation of justice.
“The set-up of one district and sessions judge, two additional sessions judges and a few civil judges was too small to deal with ever-increasing number of cases. Therefore creation of two divisions was the need of the hour,” he said.
Mr Khawar said that after this giant step, a judicial complex should be constructed to house the lower judiciary. The existing district and session court was located in a market surrounded by shops and kiosks, he said. A proper judicial complex alone will maintain the dignity of judiciary, he added.
About the recruitment of judicial officers for the new session division, he said there would be some promotion-related problems if new judges were recruited for the new session court.
Once the cash strapped government gets all set for bifurcating federal capital into two sessions divisions apparently to meet a requirement of the constitution amid fear that it would increase fiscal budget of local administration and police and put additional burden on the national exchequer.
“We have finalized the plan to make two districts with the name District-East and District-West and sent it to the interior ministry for approval,” the same chief commissioner had told Dawn a few days ago.
Islamabad Citizen's Committee (ICC) had strongly opposed the move and termed it 'wastage of time and money and a bid to accommodate few blue-eyed bureaucrats on the key posts' in the local set up.
The chief commissioner office sent a proposal last month to the interior ministry demanding creation of two separate districts. However, some of the official of the administration opposed the idea.
The stance of the chief commissioner office was that under Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) two district and session judges cannot work in one district therefore it was suggested that without turning Islamabad into two separate districts, the constitution requirement could not be fulfilled.
In case of two separate districts, the situation could become quite complex for the Capital Development Authority (CDA) also as it would have to re-demarcate its municipal limits because its Directorate of Municipal Administration will not be able to provide municipal services in both District East and District West.
Under the existing set up the CDA's municipal limits are confined only in urban areas and not in rural side.
Under the two district plan, four new posts were to be created for the new district—District and Session Judge, Deputy Commissioner, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) and Tehsildar. Other clerical and administrative staff would have to be inducted also.
The present annual budget of both local/district administration and police is more than Rs4.5 billion and it was expected that it would go up further with additional expenditure of the new district in terms of administrative expenditure, furnishing of new offices, their utility dues, etc.
An official in the interior ministry which controls the local administration said the idea of two separate district was first floated by law minister Babar Awan who also advocated and idea of making Islamabad a new province. “Setting up of two districts in Islamabad is seemed to be a part of Mr Awan's plan of new provincial setup,” he said.