ISLAMABAD: The federal government has, in principle, agreed to establish a new Commission on Enforced Disappearances under Justice (retd) Manzoor Ahmad Malik, a former judge of the Supreme Court. The National Judicial (Policy Making) Committee was informed on Thursday.
The commission will also include the Chairperson of the National Commissionfor Human Rights, Ms Rabiya Javeri Agha. It will provide a redress mechanism while ensuring implementation of Section 11EEEE of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, which requires that an arr-ested person be produced before a court within 24 hours. The NJPMC meeting, chaired by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi, was also informed that the Terms of Reference (ToRs)of the commission are yet to be finalised.
On discouraging false and frivolous litigation, the NJPMC appreciated the efforts of a committee headed by the Chief Justice of the BHC in developing a comprehensive legislative and policy framework to discourage false and frivolous litigation, drawing upon the principles embodied in the Cost of Litigation Act, 2017 (ICT).-Nasir Iqbal