PHC requires 52 judicial officers for Fata: KP Assembly to meet on Sunday to pass Fata merger bill

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) requires 52 judicial officers and an infrastructure costing Rs13,869 million for establishment of judicial system in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata).

“We have already forwarded summary about the requirement of judges and funds for establishment of judicial system in Fata after its merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” an official of the PHC told The News on Friday. He said the high court had completed work on the requirement of judges, courts and clerical staff for extension and establishment of judicial system once Fata becomes part of KP.

As per the document available with The News, it was explained that Rs9,528 million were required for establishment of seven judicial complexes at the tehsil level in all the tribal agencies and Rs4,341 million were needed for seven judicial complexes at the district level in Fata.

The summary said seven district and sessions judges - one for each tribal agency and 14 additional district and sessions judges (two each in five tribal agencies, including Kurram, Bajaur, Khyber, South Waziristan and North Waziristan, three for Mohmand and one for Orakzai Agency) along with 365 para-legal staff are required.

It said that seven senior civil judges were required for establishment of civil courts for each tribal agency and 24 civil judges, including four for Kurram, five for Bajaur, one for Mohmand, five for Khyber, four for South Waziristan, three for North Waziristan and two for Orakzai along with 458 para-legal staff.

After the National Assembly passed the historic 31st Amendment Bill paving the way for the merger of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Senate on Friday also passed the bill by majority.

After getting approval from both Houses of the Parliament, the bill will now be presented before the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly.

Meanwhile, the provincial government has decided to call the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly’s session on Sunday to endorse the Fata merger bill. The decision was made after hectic behind-the-scene work so that the assembly session is focused on getting the merger bill passed and refrains from taking up other divisive issues.

Earlier, there was concern in the ruling PTI circles that it may face an embarrassing defeat in the provincial assembly if the opposition parties and the PTI dissidents join hands to vote for the no-trust move against the Speaker Asad Qaiser. The resolution was being moved by PPP MPA Ziaullah Afridi, the former PTI provincial minister who was expelled from the party after he was arrested by the KP Ehtesab Commission on corruption charges. It is understood Ziaullah Afridi would no longer move the no-confidence resolution and the assembly proceedings in its last session would focus on the passage of the Fata merger bill.