Contempt of courts; a necessary evil.

Our courts have, more often than not, found themselves in the middle of a whirlpool. It will be unfair to say that all such instances are direct results of a miscarriage of justice. On the other hand, it would certainly take a yes-man to declare that these situations never arise because of questionable interpretation of the law. Finding the right balance between the two perspectives is not much different from funambulism. The tiniest miscalculation can result in a fall on either side. The contempt issue emanating from Imran Khan's comments toward a female judge has again stirred the love-hate relationship between our courts and the general public. Instead of making any politico-legal argument that may be cheered by some and booed by the rest, let us confine ourselves to debunking a few basic opinions concerning the subject matter, in essence, contempt of courts.

A kick-off for those assailing our courts is that the latter does not merit the respect being demanded as such. A supporting reference constantly rubbed in our faces is that due to our poor adherence to the rule of law, the World Justice Project has placed us at the 130th position, out of a total of 139 participants. It is indeed vogue to give a blanket statement and put all the blames on our judiciary. After all, reprimanding every outlaw is their only job, and diligent functioning could have certainly improved this appalling scorecard. However, turning our heads from the fact that this whole decaying society is wearying the country, has not helped so far, and expecting a different outcome hereon would not be prudent by any yardstick. It must be clarified that the World Justice Project did not review the jurisprudence of our stare decisis or comment on the competency and ability of our judges.

Hot, dry weather likely to prevail over most plain areas

Contrary to what is being portrayed, their report was based on a vast spectrum of factors and the performance of all stakeholders. Indeed, civil and criminal justice systems were analysed but those systems are not limited to judges only. Doctors, police officers, lawyers, prison officers, and civil society work together to achieve an ideal criminal justice system. Similarly, civil justice involves numerous players. To decide rankings, the World Justice System reviewed the performance and efficacy of our legislature, bureaucrats, media personnel, and existing government framework, which equally, if not more, contributed to placing our...

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