ISLAMABAD - The Supreme Court on Monday directed the federal government to examine enhancing compensation grant to the aggrieved families of the lawyers killed in the March 3 attack on Islamabad district courts and submit its report within 10 days.
A two-member bench, comprising Justice Khilji Arif Hussain and Justice Dost Muhammad Khan, were hearing the suo motu case of the Islamabad district courts attack.
At least 11 people, including Additional District and Sessions Judge Rafaqat Awan, were killed and 29 others wounded on March 3 during a gun and bomb attack on the Islamabad district courts.
Supreme Court Bar Association President Kamran Murtaza, Islamabad High Court Bar Association President Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani and others told the court that the government had allocated Rs 500,000 to the families of the deceased lawyers. Justice Dost Muhammad said: “A Grade-20 officer is given Rs 10 million if something happens to him, but those who assist judges in dispensation of justice are ignored.”
They said the Sindh government, in a similar incident, granted Rs 2 million as compensation to the heirs of each deceased advocate, while the KP government paid Rs 1.5 million to the heirs of each deceased lawyer. Likewise, the injured lawyers were given about Rs 1 million as compensation. They contended that in the instant case the federal government granted only Rs 500,000 as compensation to the family of each deceased advocate, which was too small to heal the miseries of the bereaved families. The deputy attorney general said he would take up the matter with the quarters concerned.
The advocates further argued that despite the tragic incident, security arrangements in the session courts, Islamabad, were not satisfactory. The deputy attorney general assured the court of asking the quarters concerned to take special security measures in the district courts to avoid any such incident in future.
Regarding shifting of the district courts from the present place to some other suitable place, IHBA President Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani said no funds had so far been allocated, adding the PC-1 had been submitted in this regard.
SCBA President Kamran Murtaza told the court that the commission constituted to probe the terrorist attack on the district courts had not so far submitted its report. He sought adjournment of the case till the completion of the inquiry. The bench asked him to place a copy of the commission’s report on record for their perusal.
The lawyers told the court that medical facilities were being provided to Rai Nazeer advocate and they had no grievance in this regard.
The hearing adjourned till a date in office after 10 days.