ISLAMABAD: Justice Ejaz Ishaq Khan, a judge of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) raised questions over the decision of a IHC division bench order that after the Civil Courts (Amendment) Act, 2025, now the district judges would hear the civil appeals instead of the High Court.
A division bench of IHC comprising Justice Muhammad Azam Khan and Justice Inaam Amin Minhas had declared it in a civil reference titled, “The Civil Courts (Amendment) Act, 2025 and Transfer of Appeals from Islamabad High Court to District Judges (East) & (West), Islamabad, in pursuance thereof.”
During the hearing, Justice Ishaq summoned the additional registrar and remarked that a bench of two junior judges was formed and all cases were sent back to the district courts. He added that this decision should have been made in a full court meeting to determine whether the cases were to be heard by the High Court or sent to the district courts.
Justice Ishaq maintained that even the opinions of the judges hearing the appeals were not sought. He remarked that the cases have been heard for four years, many were 80 per cent completed and now they have been abruptly sent to the district courts by the judges who had joined the IHC three months ago.
He further said that now, the district courts will start rehearing the cases, which will cause difficulties for the litigants and they will have to pay fees again.
In this matter, the IHC Office moved the instant reference and attached a list of cases pertaining to Regular First Appeals filed against the decrees or orders passed by learned Civil Judges working under the administrative control of the IHC. The list contained 1594 RFAs, which is stated to be tentative.
The questions formulated in the reference were included whether amendment made in Section 18 is a matter of procedure and had retrospective effect? and whether High Court can transfer pending appeals to the District Judges on its own motion without notice to the parties to the list?.
Justice Azam, who authored the judgment, said that the power of High Court delegated under Section 24, CPC, is further fortified in the judgment passed in Khan Muhammad and others Vs Ishtiaq Hussain reported as 1987 SCMR 1482.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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