Procedural justice and the right to a fair trial in Pakistan

The study examines how the current tapestry of procedural justice in Pakistan is contrary to the principles of fair trial, as envisaged by Article 10-A of the Constitution of Pakistan, read with Article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It underlines the elements of procedural laws and the roles of their regulators that the policymakers must consider for the reforms beyond conventional and domestic settings of the legal system in Pakistan. This study has imminently been required after the United Nations Human Rights Committee has repeatedly rejected the excuse of judicial backlog and characterized procedural delays as a violation of the right to a fair trial since its inception. By ratifying the ICCPR, Pakistan has pledged to guarantee the right to a fair trial as a fundamental right under the Constitution (Eighteenth Amendment) Act 2010, which thus obligates it to revamp its legal framework to adjudicate disputes consistent with the newly incorporated Article 10-A. One of the fundamental elements of the right to a fair trial is the settlement of disputes without unreasonable delay. This meticulous discourse necessitated the analysis of how procedural justice without essential features such as a statutorily mechanized framework of the case-flow management, effective cost imposition, and supporting non-adversarial settlement etc., for dispute resolution impacts the right to a fair trial and deters those vulnerable and oppressed from access to justice, with no end of their hardships in sight. The Constitution and ICCPR envision a statutorily backed procedural scheme that ensures prompt and equal access to justice. The legal codes and court procedures of the colonial era remain largely intact despite changes in the social, legal, and economic landscape of the country. This has led to poor rankings in international human rights indices, which intensifies the desire for reform. The thesis aims to address the issues of procedural justice that reflect on the right to a fair trial and create a socio-legal void in the given jurisdiction.