Islamabad High Court (IHC) Judge Mohsin Akhtar Kayani. PHOTO: ARCHIVE
ISLAMABAD:
Islamabad High Court (IHC) Senior Judge Mohsin Akhtar Kayani ordered that the Rules of Practice and Procedure be uploaded on the official website of the IHC within 48 hours.
It has also directed that copies of the rules be provided to the Islamabad High Court Bar Association and the district bar associations. The judge has observed that if the order is not complied with, he will summon the IHC registrar.
Justice Kayani made these comments during the hearing of a case related to PTCL. During the process, when faced with a judicial inquiry about the Rules of Practice and Procedure, a lawyer expressed ignorance and stated that he sought to obtain the rules through a formal request.
Justice Kayani commented that the IHC had made rules that not even the judges themselves had received. “I’m a judge and I haven’t received them… so how could you?” said. He added that although the full court had approved the rules, they were never made public and described the Rules of Practice and Procedure as a “secret document.”
He directed the lawyer to write to the registrar to provide the rules, but noted that even after submitting an application, this could take up to three months. “If any document is required here, it usually takes months for the registrar to provide it,” he observed.
The lawyer stated that he had already consulted with the Ministry of Justice and would submit a formal request. Addressing the petitioner’s counsel, the court observed that if the order was not complied with, the counsel could initiate criminal proceedings.
The court reiterated its direction that the rules be uploaded on the website within 48 hours and warned that non-compliance would lead to criminal proceedings, with summons to the registrar. When the lawyer requested that a new hearing be set for January 29, Judge Kayani commented that he was not sure if he would be present on that date. Subsequently, the court adjourned the hearing without setting a date.
