At 12th Judicial Conference, President Mahmood calls for balance among state pillars

Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Barrister Sultan Mahmood has stressed that judiciary, legislature, and executive must maintain a system of mutual checks and balances under the principle of trichotomy of powers to lay the foundation of a democratic and welfare state.

Whenever any of these three pillars of state overstepped its limits, the result was anarchy and chaos,” he said in his address as chief guest at the 12th Judicial Conference.

Titled "Dispensation of Justice: Modern Requirements and Challenges," the conference was organised under the auspices of the AJK High Court on Tuesday.  

Before the president's address, Chief Justice Sadaqat Hussain Raja and Justice Mian Arif Hussain delivered keynote speeches, providing an overview of the judiciary's performance, achievements, and the challenges it faced.

Advocate General Sheikh Masood Iqbal, Law Secretary Waheed-ul-Hassan Shahid, AJK Bar Council’s Vice Chairman Syed Ashfaq Hussain Kazmi, President of the AJK Supreme Court Bar Association Javed Najam-us-Saqib, President of the AJK High Court Bar Association Khalid Bashir Mughal, and others also addressed the event, attended by a large audience, primarily from the legal fraternity.

During a briefing on the four-year performance report, additional registrar Riaz Shafi informed attendees that as of January 2020, the High Court had a backlog of 9,237 cases. Between 2020 and 2024, 46,349 new cases were filed, bringing the total number of cases under adjudication during this period to 55,586.

Of these, 38,560 cases were resolved, leaving 17,026 cases pending at the end of 2024 across the High Court headquarters and circuit benches.

Similarly, in the district courts of AJK, 41,215 cases were pending as of January 2020. Between 2020 and 2024, 278,808 new cases were filed, bringing the total to 320,023 cases under adjudication. Of these, 276,171 cases were resolved, leaving 43,852 cases pending in the district courts by the end of 2024.

The president maintained that in a welfare state, the judiciary's primary role was to protect citizens' fundamental rights, particularly when these rights were threatened by legislative or executive actions.

“Initially, it is the legislature’s responsibility to legislate in accordance with public rights, while the judiciary ensures the protection of individual rights at subsequent stages,” he said.

He vowed that all resources of the state would be utilised to uphold the supremacy of the Constitution, law, and justice so that their benefits reached the common person.

President Mahmood praised the AJK judiciary’s history, saying it was adorned with landmark decisions made in the public interest and in adherence to fundamental legal principles.

According to him, the integrity of AJK judges was recognized and respected even among lawyers and judges in Pakistan.

“It is our duty to maintain this glorious tradition, ensuring that current and future judges preserve this esteemed legacy,” he said.

The president stressed the need to automate judicial records and proceedings to address issues such as unnecessary adjournments, repeated appearances of witnesses, delays in case hearings, and to ensure merit-based case fixation.

He commended the high court chief justice for initiating this process and expressed hope that AJK’s judiciary would soon surpass the judicial systems of Pakistan’s provinces in this domain.

The AJK president also called for refresher courses for lawyers to familiarize them with modern jurisprudence and technological advancements.

Apart from that, modernisation of the prosecution service was also the need of the hour, particularly in criminal cases, to enhance the judicial system’s overall effectiveness, he said. 

Tariq Naqash