False witnesses to be tried under perjury, rules SC

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued its detailed judgment over the legal status of false testimony and ordered legal proceedings under perjury against any witness found to have resorted to deliberate falsehood.

The verdict was authored by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Asif Saeed Khosa in reference to a case of false testimony of assistant sub-inspector Khizar Hayat. In its judgment, the apex court ordered the courts not to allow any leniency against those resorting to false testimonies and reject testimonies if even a part of them was based on lies.

The order stated: “A judicial system, which permits deliberate falsehood, is doomed to fail and a society, which tolerates it, is destined to self-destruct. Justice is the core and bedrock of a civilised society and, thus, any compromise on truth amounts to a compromise on a society’s future as a just, fair and civilised society.”

The apex court said the judicial system had suffered a lot as a consequence of the above mentioned permissible deviation from the truth and it was about time that such a colossal wrong might be rectified in all earnestness.

“Therefore, in light of the discussion made above, we declare that the rule ‘falsus in uno, falsus in omnibus’ (falsein one thing, false in everything) shall henceforth be an integral part of our jurisprudence in criminal cases and the same shall be given effect to, followed and applied by all the courts in the country in its letter and spirit,” the order stated.

“It is also directed that a witness found by a court to have resorted to a deliberate falsehood on a material aspect shall, without any latitude, invariably be proceeded against for committing perjury,” it said.