JUDGMENT SHEET

ISLAMABAD HIGH COURT, ISLAMABAD,

JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT

W.P. No. 1972-2024

Sumaira Shaheen and others

versus
Judge Family Court-East, Islamabad and another.

Petitioners by: M/s Saira Khalid Rajput, Saiqa Azam,

Shazia Saleem and Saima Yasmin Awan,
Advocates.

Respondents by: Ms. Raheema Khan & Mr. Abdul Ahad

Khokhar, Advocates for respondent
No.2.

Date of Decision: 12.07.2024.

MOHSIN AKHTAR KAYANI, J: Through this writ petition the

petitioner No.1 / Sumaira Shaheen has prayed for issuance of direction to

the Judge Family Court, Islamabad to pass appropriate orders to

respondent No.2 / Ziad Iqbal for submission of written statement

forthwith with absolute last opportunity and further direction to dispose

of the entire matter at the earliest as per mandatory provision of section

12-A of the West Pakistan Family Court Act, 1964.

2. Learned counsel for the petitioners contends that the suit for

dissolution of marriage on the basis of Khullah, recovery of maintenance,

gold ornaments and dowry articles was filed on 31.10.2022 against Ziad

Iqbal / respondent No.2, but despite best efforts the same could not be

resolved till date after the elapse of 20 months. Learned counsel for the

petitioners has further drawn attention of this Court towards the order

sheet in which the Judge Family Court has proceeded with the matter in a

casual manner which is not in line with the timeline provided in West

Pakistan Family Court Act, 1964. While going through the record it is
W.P. No.1972 / 2024 Page | 2
reflected that on the first date of hearing this Court on 24.06.2024 has

passed the directions to learned MIT of this Court to call the Judge Family

Court for counseling session, consequently, learned MIT in the light of

directions passed by this Court submitted detailed compliance report

through which multiple directions were transmitted to the Judges Family

Courts by highlighting the fault lines in terms of different proceedings in

which noticeable delay has been recorded including but not limited to

fixation of maintenance, filing of written statement as well as the

amendment in the plaint or in other ancillary matters.

3. Learned counsel for the respondent on instructions of respondent

No.2 acknowledged prayer of the petitioner and claims that they have no

objection on allowing instant writ petition. They further highlighted

multiple issues in which the families in litigation are suffering due to delay

in the family court proceedings.

4. I have gone through the record of this case with the able assistance

of both the counsels of the parties which reflects that unnecessary delay

has been caused due to various factors in this case and one lady / the

petitioner suffered due to procedural aspects recorded in different orders

of the proceedings including but not limited to issuance of notice, filing of

written statement, setting aside of ex-parte proceedings application and

the most glaring and shocking is the time spent in deciding the application

for amendment in the pleadings which was filed by the petitioner in order

to bring on record her newly born baby who was born during the

pendency of the matter alongwith her claim of maintenance. The petitioner

also complains that the interim maintenance was fixed on 27.06.2024 even

without her presence before the court in a mechanical manner by the trial
W.P. No.1972 / 2024 Page | 3
court without extending any right of hearing, however, at this stage it is

settled proposition of law that interim maintenance could not be

challenged in the constitutional jurisdiction as held in PLD 2016 [Lahore]

73 (Ali Adnan Dar Vs. Judge Family Court), PLJ 2022 744 (Muhammad

Naveed Akhtar Vs. Mst. Ghazala Batool), PLD 2011 [Lahore] 610

(Ghafoor Ahmed Butt Vs. Mst. Iram Butt), 2021 CLC 561 (Shah Maqsood

Vs. Khair-un-Nisa), 2021 YLR 2166 (Aamir Munir Puri Vs. Mst.Saima

Naeem and others), 2015 YLR 2364 (Tahir Ayub Vs. Miss Atia Anwar) and

PLD 2013 [Lahore] 64 (Muhammad Shahbaz Khalid Vs. Judge Family

Court), but it is the most sacred duty of the Judge Family Court to resolve

the family issues in line with the mandate of West Pakistan Family Court

Act, 1964, as well as to strictly adhere the legislative intent in terms of

section 12-A which is as under:

“The Family Court shall dispose of a case, including a

suit for dissolution of marriage, within a period of six
months from the date of institution”
However, this Court has noticed in multiple cases that Family

Courts’ proceedings are lingering on either due to the conduct of the

parties or due to some other factors including but not limited to sluggish

approach adopted by the Judges of Family Courts as well as by the

lawyers in family cases without realizing the concept enshrined in

Chapter-2 ‘Principles of Policy‟ in terms of Article-33 of the Constitution of

Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973, where ‘parochial and other similar

prejudices to be discouraged‟ as well as the spirit of Article-35 which echoes

that „State shall protect the marriage, the family, the mother and the child‟.

5. This court has also noticed huge pendency of the family cases in

District Courts (East and West Divisions), Islamabad, as well as the case to
W.P. No.1972 / 2024 Page | 4
judge ratio which spells out difficult position for the family judges to

decide the cases by adopting mediation approach between the parents, or

the husband and wife, as the case may be, however, it is responsibility of

State to protect social justice and eradicate social evils in terms of

Article-37 of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973, which

states that ‘State shall ensure inexpensive and expeditious justice‟. Similarly the

mandate of Article-4 of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan,

1973, gives ‘right to every individual to enjoy protection of law and to be treated

in accordance with the law which is inalienable right of every citizen, wherever he

may be, and of every other person for the time being within Pakistan and no action

detrimental to the life, liberty, body, reputation or property of any person shall be

taken except in accordance with the law’. After going through all these

concepts read with right to life under Article-9 of the Constitution of

Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973, this Court is of the view that following

directions are required to resolve all such practices in which women of

Pakistan stand negated or deprived from their right to life or to be treated

with biases in which they could not get their legal relief within the time

frame provided in statute. Therefore, it is responsibility of the State as well

as of this Court to draw such mechanism and procedure to eliminate the

delays and to provide speedy mechanism of dispensation of justice in the

family cases to every woman and child. No doubt the men will also be

beneficiary of such directions, hence, this Court directs that:

i. While reaping benefits of modern era, digitalization

and rapid development in IT sector, Special E-Courts
be established in which pleadings centric approach
may not be the part of the process rather claim based
concept be considered more appropriate and any
W.P. No.1972 / 2024 Page | 5
party in a family dispute can record their video
statement and transmit the same to the trial court to
prove his / her claim and relief claimed in detail,
thereafter, on the basis of such statement the Judge
Family Court shall confront to the other party and
decide the matter while considering his / her
recorded message in place of the written pleadings.
ii. Islamabad High Court shall provide E-kiosk which
shall transform and transmit the pleadings into
E-Filing system which should be recorded in a
separate E-System software and in this manner the
case be presented to Judge Family Court in the IT
System on multiple media screens.
iii. The Judge Family Court after issuing notice in terms
of the West Pakistan Family Court Act, 1964, may
direct the opponent party to record their statement
through video link facility and in the same session of
video link hearing of both the parties in presence of
their counsel or otherwise, subject to satisfaction that
the parties have verified their identity may proceed
accordingly and decide the case forthwith.
iv. The Family Court issues a summons to the defendant
under Section 8 (1) of the Family Court Act, it must
notify the fact that the defendant is bound to submit
his written statement on the date fixed for
appearance, as per Section 9 (1) of the Act. The family
court has to curtail unnecessary time consumption on
filing of wakalatnama and multiple adjournments for
submitting the written statement, thereby reducing
delays in the proceedings.
v. To curtail unnecessary delays, and to strictly comply
with Sections 8 (1) and 9 (1) of the Act if the
defendant seeks adjournment, it should be on a daily
basis, subject to cost, and the reasons for the
adjournment should be reflected in the order sheet.
The adjournments sought by the defendant for filing
W.P. No.1972 / 2024 Page | 6
the written statement should not stretch more than
fifteen days in any eventuality.
vi. Any application if filed before the family judge in
presence of other party the same should be
confronted to the other side and approach should be
to decide such an application preferably within three
days and unnecessary adjournments may not be
granted for submission of replies or amendments in
pleadings as it is already settled proposition of law
that technicalities of civil procedure code are not
applicable in family cases.
vii. Additionally, Family Court judges must comply with
Section 10 (1 & 2) of the Act, which requires
examining the plaint, written statement, evidence,
and documents to understand controversies and
address jurisdictional or ancillary matters. If a
defendant challenges the court's jurisdiction instead
of filing a written statement, the Family Court must
first require the written statement with the
jurisdictional plea included, and decide on it during
the pre-trial hearing.
viii. Before proceeding with any family suit, the Judge
Family Court must provide both parties, the
opportunity to settle the issue through a one-on-one
session, without interference of a third person as
expressed under section 10 (3) of The West Pakistan
Family Court Act, 1964. Additionally, the
opportunity for mediation shall also be provided at
the first instance.
ix. The Judge Family Court has already been exempted
from technical procedural aspects of conducting the
proceedings in terms of Qanun-e-Shahadat Order,
1984, or under Civil Procedure Code, 1908, therefore,
Judge Family Court can adopt any procedure instead
of lengthy concept of trial within Family Court Act,
1964.
W.P. No.1972 / 2024 Page | 7
x. Any of the Judge of the family Court who has not
concluded the family suit within the time line
provided under section 12-A of West Pakistan Family
Court Act, 1964, shall be considered liable for
misconduct by the concerned District Judges as to
why the family cases were not proceeded in a manner
referred in the West Pakistan Family Court Act, 1964,
by adopting the time line in a strict sense.
xi. Every District Judge of the concerned Division shall
himself / herself verify and inspect on different
intervals case files of each family court and pass
necessary directions for decision of the family suits
within the prescribed period as well as direct the
judges to follow the different time lines provided
under the law, violation if any be reported in writing.
xii. By adopting the modern devices, IT concept and
processes, institution branch shall direct each counsel
as well as party to provide their telephone numbers,
mobile phone numbers and e-mails for the purposes
of services of summons so that the service should not
be restricted to the residential or official address as
the case may be and any other mode of service on the
basis of text message, e-mail, whatsapp, facebook or
twitter shall be treated valid subject to its proof.
xiii. The parties should be encouraged, especially,
women, to record their statement through video link
facility on the date of hearing and the Family Court
Judges shall encourage litigants to use modern
technologies of video link and the facilities of E-
Courts.
xiv. The Family Judge not adhering to the spirit of law
shall be given fair chance of counseling by the
concerned District Judge and if after at least two
sessions, any of the Judge Family Court fails to adopt
the procedure provided under the law, he / she shall
W.P. No.1972 / 2024 Page | 8
be treated under the efficiency and discipline
mechanism accordingly in a fair manner.
xv. Only those cases are exception to clause (x) above, in
which disputed question of facts require deeper
appreciation.
xvi. The Judge Family Court shall enquire the financial
and social status of husband / father as the case may
be in any family suit while fixing the maintenance of
minor or the wife or ex-wife for her iddat period as
the case may be in accordance with the yardsticks
settled in PLD 2009 [Lahore] 18 (Mst. Sitwat
Chughtai Vs. Judge Family Court, Lahore), 2015 YLR
2364 (Tahir Ayub Khan Vs. Miss Aliya Anwar), PLD
2018 [SC] 819 (Muhammad Asim Vs. Mst. Samro
Begum), 2020 CLC 131 (Dr. Aqeel Waris Vs. Ibrahim
Aqeel) and PLD 2009 [SC] 760 (Tauqeer Ahmad
Qureshi Vs. Additional District Judge Lahore) and
shall decide the fate of interim maintenance in terms
of section 17-A of the West Pakistan Family Court
Act, 1964, preferably within period of three to six
days.
xvii. The Registrar of this Court shall also arrange services
of clinical psychologist as well as child psychologist
in the Family Courts for counseling sessions of the
Family Judges as well as to the husband and wife,
including parties in family suits so that a family unit
may be saved from rigors of trial, delay and cost
which are ordinarily faced by the parties in the
judicial process, subject to availability of these experts
as family counselors to provide services.
xviii. In order to achieve the directions, the High Court
may call any expert, INGO, NGO or University for
provision of any dedicated system, supportive
mechanism or program which could effectively
resolve the longstanding issues of family disputes
including training of Judges and lawyers, etc.
W.P. No.1972 / 2024 Page | 9
xix. The Registrar as well as MIT of this Court shall
ensure that all such directions be notified after due
approval by the AC Committee of this Court and
implement the directions by arranging all such
required facilities.
6. In light of above discussion, instant writ petition stands DISPOSED

OF with above directions. Copy of this order may also be transmitted to the

Registrar as well as MIT of this Court and to both the District Judges (East &

West) Divisions of Islamabad, to do the needful in letter and spirit. The

learned Judge Family Court seized with the matter is directed to decide the

family suit forthwith by proceeding on day to day basis under intimation to

this Court.

(MOHSIN AKHTAR KAYANI)

JUDGE

Approved for reporting.

A.Waheed/-