• Pleas filed under Article 184(3) to be fixed after review. 
• Next huddle will be held on January 4, 2024.
• Draft of Procedure Rules to be shared in next meeting. 

ISLAMABAD: A committee of judges formed under the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act, 2023, has decided that the civil and criminal cases will be fixed on a “first come first served” basis, The News reported Monday. 

This was decided in a meeting chaired by Chief Justice of Pakistan ( CJP) Qazi Faez Isa. The committee also decided that the petitions filed under Article 184(3) would be fixed in the court after review. 

The next huddle will be held on January 4, 2024. 

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court registrar provided a schedule of the judges to be available at Islamabad and branch registries during the winter vacation of 2023, from December 18 to December 29.

In compliance with the directions of the 4th meeting of the committee constituted under Section 2 of the SC (Practice and Procedure) Act, 2023, the registrar/secretary provided the said schedule of judges who are available at registries during the winter vacations.

According to the availability of judges, the court roaster was approved during the 5th meeting of the committee, comprising CJP Isa, Justice Sardar Tariq Masood and Justice Ijazul Ahsan. 

According to the court roaster, a three-member bench of the apex court will hear cases at the principal seat, Islamabad, from December 18 (December) to December 22 (Friday).

The bench comprises Justice Masood, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Athar Minallah.

Similarly at Quetta Registry, a two-member bench comprising Justice Yahya Afridi and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail will hear the cases.

Likewise, at the Karachi Registry, a three-member bench comprising Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Syed Hassan Rizvi and Justice Irfan Saadat Khan will hear the cases.

Meanwhile, from December 26 (Tuesday) to December 29 (Friday), Justice Masood will do chamber work at the Islamabad Registry while a two-member bench comprising Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan and Justice Musarat Hilali will hear cases at the Peshawar Registry.

Similarly, a three-member bench comprising Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Justice Syed Hassan Azhar Rizvi will hear cases at the Karachi Registry.

Likewise, the committee decided that a civil petition for leave to appeal filed in the apex court shall be abbreviated as CPLA and a constitutional petition under Article 184(3) of the Constitution shall be abbreviated as CP.

The committee directed the office to designate, assign and abbreviate these matters and also inform the advocates Supreme Court and Advocates on Record (AORs).

The committee also discussed petitions under Article 184(3) of the Constitution and other matters mentioned in the list and decided to be fixed in court.

It was decided that the draft of Procedure Rules will be shared with all the members of the committee for discussion thereon in the next meeting, which will be held on January 4, 2024.

The Higher Education Commission (HEC) has banned University of Lakki Marwat from granting new admissions or affiliations to the students over violations of its guidelines.

The education commission issued an alert through its official account on microblogging site, X, announcing the ban on the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa varsity.

It said that the ban has been imposed after observing some serious irregularities which affected the quality of education the students are receiving at the university. 

The Higher Education Commission (HEC) Pakistan, in its recent inspection of the University of Lakki Marwat, on September 21, 2023, has observed serious irregularities and flagrant violations/non-adherence of HEC’s guidelines/criteria/policies that are adversely affecting the quality of education being imparted by the University of Lakki Marwat,” the commission said in the notice.

It said that it had completely banned the varsity from announcing fresh admissions and granting affiliations, and cautioned all the stakeholders from taking admissions with the institute.

Moreover, it publicly announced that there is a country-wide ban on granting of fresh affiliations by all public sector universities as well. 

ISLAMABAD: The United States Educational Foundation in Pakistan (USEFP) has invited students to apply for the prestigious Fulbright Student Programme 2024.

The Fulbright Program in Pakistan is funded by the United States Government and is the world’s largest in terms of financial contribution, said a press release on Thursday.

Applications are welcome from all disciplines, including energy, water, agriculture, health, education, environmental science, and climate change. While clinical medicine is not included in the Fulbright Program, non-clinical public health applications are encouraged.

Interested applicants can apply at www.usefp.org before the deadline on February 28, 2024. The premier academic exchange program covers graduate studies, tuition, maintenance, insurance, and air travel.

All applicants are required to take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) and must have a minimum score of 145 in both the verbal and quantitative sections of the exam. Shortlisted candidates will be required to take the Duolingo English Test.

On the impact of the Fulbright Program in Pakistan, US Ambassador Donald Blome said: “Pakistani Fulbrighters have solved social problems, written new laws, advanced policies to ensure equal access and voices to all, and so much more. They do this all for one purpose: to create a better, safer, and more prosperous Pakistan. In this goal, the United States and Pakistan are united.”

Under the Fulbright Programme, nearly 3,000 Pakistani students have received fully funded scholarships to study for graduate study since 2005. These awardees have completed their studies and research and are now making significant contributions to the public and private sectors with their knowledge and expertise.

In a message to potential applicants, USEFP Executive Director Rita Akhtar encourages talented students and working professionals to consider applying. 

“We especially want to encourage applicants from public universities and under-served areas. Fulbright is a merit-based program, but in defining merit, the program considers the obstacles and challenges applicants have faced as well as their achievements.

“One of the goals of the program is to build human capacity in Pakistan, so successful applicants will plan to return to Pakistan on completion of their degrees and use their new skills and knowledge for the benefit of the country.”