Out of Court Settlement

(Copy of my letter to the CJP)

Honourable Chief Justice of Pakistan:

Sir:

Your public concern for the lacs of cases pending and setting your own house (judiciary) in order has encouraged me to write the following:.

Anyone going into any litigation knows in the heart of his hearts as to who is on the right and who is on the wrong. However, the ‘smart’ lawyers and, pardon my saying, the corrupt judges make the proceeding linger on for years before the issue is decided.  

May I, therefore, suggest to introduce the following system to provide quick and fair justice to all.

• Extensive publicity through all kind of media be given and all litigants allowed three months to settle their disputes out of the court mutually or through elders or through Panchayats, Jirgas etc. etc. Decisions of Jirga/Panchayat etc. shall, however, be not binding unless accepted willfully by the parties involved.
• Only those issues/matters that are not decided as per above shall be brought before a court of law for proper and expeditious adjudication.
• The party found guilty shall not only be punished but punished MOST severely depriving it of all moveable and immoveable properties.  (This fact of EXTREME sever punishment of the New System would be made known to all before hand through publicity etc.)
• Sorry to say, but NO appeal of any kind to be granted.  I know it would look strange to legal minds but with very able, firm and fair judges hearing such leftover disputed cases, one should expect ABSOLUTELY fair judgment in each case.  And, if the Right of Appeal cannot be done away with, then in case the verdict of the judge is reversed by the Appellant Court that judge must be sent home.

As is normally the case with every new procedure and conduct, not many will be prepared to decided their disputes mutually. As such still quite a many lac cases could appear before the courts.  To curtail this tendency and make the new system more effective following step be taken:

• Extensive publicity of the ‘MOST SEVERE’ punishment meted out to the few guilty persons whose cases were initially tried be given to act as a horrific deterrent to others.
• Another chance be given to the litigants who failed before to decide their disputes out of the court and allowed another 2 months or so to settle  their disputes mutually, failing which their cases would be heard by the court.

I think, more than 90 percent of the cases would be decided out of the courts and things would improve tremendously.  I am also alive to the fact that this new system shall  heavily tell upon the  practice of the lawyers, but they could make a little sacrifice for the good of the people.

Respectfully Yours,

Lt Col. S. Riaz Jafri (Retd)

Col. Riaz Jafri (Retd)