ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan has ruled that sending cases back to lower courts should not be treated as a matter of routine, stressing that such remands often waste time and compromise the spirit of timely justice.
A bench headed by Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah observed that appellate courts must decide matters when the factual record is complete and issues are purely legal, rather than remanding cases merely as a formality. The judgment came during a hearing of an appeal filed by the Secretary and Chairman of Pakistan Railways against a 2022 Federal Service Tribunal decision which had granted advance increments to an accounts officer, Tariq Mansoor, under two separate government schemes.
The court clarified that the 1966 Incentive Scheme for Railways Officers and Subordinates did not apply to the audit department of Pakistan Railways, and the 1996 Office Memorandum granting increments for certain qualifications did not recognise the LLB degree in the claimed context.
Justice Shah noted that remanding cases unnecessarily “sacrifices substance for procedure” and causes avoidable delays in justice delivery. He emphasised that remand is only appropriate when material facts remain unresolved, procedural fairness has been violated, or vital evidence was ignored by a lower forum.
Citing Article 37(d) of the Constitution, the court underlined that access to expeditious and inexpensive justice is a constitutional right, and courts must practice judicial economy to prevent duplication of proceedings. The ruling sets an important precedent for all appellate forums, reaffirming that justice delayed is indeed justice denied.
This story has been reported by PakTribune. All rights reserved.