LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Monday struck down Civil Procedure Code (Punjab Amendment) Ordinance 2021 which the government claimed to have introduced to ensure speedy disposal of cases.
The court allowed the petitions of Punjab Bar Council (PbBC) and others through a short order announced in the open court.
The petitioners’ counsel Ahmad Qayum, also a member of the PbBC, contended that the impugned ordinance was ultra vires to articles 202 and 203 of the Constitution and violative of basic structure of the Constitution. He said the ordinance was in contradiction of independence of judiciary and the fundamental rights of the litigants and citizens of the province of Punjab.
He said the record clearly indicated that the requirement of the approval by the cabinet was not fulfilled and in fact the minutes placed on record were quite possibly doctored or manufactured and contempt had been committed by trying to “mislead” the court.
He said the ordinance had been issued without any consultation with stakeholders including most crucially the rule-making committee of the LHC and even the bar council.
The court after hearing the petitioners’ counsel at length allowed the petitions and struck down Civil Procedure Code (Amendment) Ordinance 2021.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
Comments
Comments are closed.