Failing justice system breeds authoritarianism, graft: SC

Thu, September 04, 2025

Supreme Court has strongly criticised Pakistan’s criminal justice system, ruling that a weak and compromised framework not only undermines the rule of law but also fosters corruption, authoritarianism, and the dominance of the powerful and privileged.

In a detailed 20-page judgment authored by Justice Athar Minallah, while commuting a death sentence to life imprisonment for a man incarcerated for 25 years, the court observed that an effective and responsive criminal justice system, free from political interference and corruption, is a fundamental right of every citizen.

The top court observed that inexpensive and expeditious justice was a commitment of the state under the Constitution.

 “The criminal justice system will only serve its purpose when the actual stakeholders, the people of this country, will have trust and confidence in a system which is free, accessible, impartial, responsive, independent, and free from corruption or any other influence.”

“It is, therefore, a constitutional duty of every organ of the State—the executive, judiciary, and the legislature—to take urgent steps so as to ensure that the criminal justice system serves the people of this country and they repose their trust and confidence in its fairness, impartiality, and independence,” the ruling stated.

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