The custody of family members and children becomes a hectic procedure especially with the backlog of cases and a number of other cases being pursued during the daytime. The Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP), particularly Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar, has revolutionised the use of current court space. To accommodate cases of custody and to provide children with a better environment, CJP has introduced evening courts. The first court to take up this initiative is the Lahore High Court (LHC) inaugurated by the Lahore High Court Chief Justice Muhammad Anwarul Haq on Friday.

This is a move which should be commended because many initiatives are not taken up due to the lack of space. Reusing facilities during the evening not only saves a lot of resources but also inculcates a sense of reusing the already available resources to improve the current situation. Courts are already facing a huge backlog of cases, particularly because courts have been involved in political cases in the last two years. After the successful transfer of power, the judicial system can now work towards improving the justice system and create space for taking up more cases.

These evening courts also accept a shift in society. During the day, many family members are working and cannot skip work to make space for court cases. Setting up these evening courts not only utilises the given space but also allows the space to working men and women to attend to work during the day and pursue these cases in the evening. At the same time, the cases for custody of children during the day also ignore the fact that many children attend school during the day. This affects their learning curve and their only focus then remains on these cases which not only affect their mental health but they also have to visit an environment which is very intimidating.

This is the first step towards revolutionisation of the justice system. If the same efforts are expanded to other courts, the judicial system can soon get rid of the label that it does not offer swift justice. Many people turn towards traditional justice systems, like jirgas and panchayats, due to the belief that they offer speedy justice but taking up such initiatives can direct the citizens towards courts, and also create more job opportunities in a market that is becoming more and more saturated.