Speedy justice: Model courts decide 262 cases in single day

ISLAMABAD: In a move towards ensuring the provision of speedy justice in the country, the nation-wide model courts on Wednesday announced verdicts in 262 cases in a single day, ARY NEWS reported.

According to details, the model criminal courts decided 18 murder and 44 narcotics cases. The cases saw one death sentence while 22 other accused were awarded life sentences besides a total fine of Rs 423,400 imposed on them.

The model civil appellate courts also decided 109 cases pertaining to civil matters including family disputes and rent appeals.

The model magistrate courts announced verdicts in 91 cases and awarded 50-month prison term to 10 accused and a fine of Rs 317,120.

It is pertinent to mention here that model courts started functioning from 15 July 2019 and during a briefing to the former Chief Justice of Pakistan in November 2019, it was informed that during a brief period of 88 days model civil appellate courts decided a record number of 19,316 cases, likewise model trial magistrate courts have decided 18,908 cases besides recording statements of 39906 witnesses.

It was briefed that there were 26 jurisdictions where all four categories of civil appeals, civil revisions, family and rent appeals have been decided and pendency is reduced to zero by the model civil appellate courts.

There are five jurisdictions where the model trial magistrate courts have decided all the pending criminal cases.

Chief Justice of Pakistan Asif Saeed Khosa at that time said that model courts materialised the vision of expeditious and inexpensive justice as envisaged in the country’s constitution, which otherwise was just a dream before the establishment of such courts.