Supreme Court sets 45-day target to clear death, life imprisonment cases

ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - The Supreme Court of Pakistan has set a target to dispose of all pending death sentence and life imprisonment cases within the next 45 days.

According to an official statement issued by the apex court, the total number of pending criminal cases has significantly reduced under the leadership of the Chief Justice of Pakistan. Since October 2024, the backlog has declined from 19,549 cases to 12,705.

The statement further noted that between February 9 and February 14, 2026, the Supreme Court disposed of 354 criminal cases related to death penalties and life imprisonment. During the same week, 131 new cases of the same category were filed.

Also read: LHC CJ stresses modern methods to dispose of pending cases

The court highlighted that the weekly disposal rate remained nearly 270 percent higher than the number of newly instituted cases. It was decided that all pending death penalty cases up to January 2026 would be addressed on a priority basis.

The statement added that special benches, reform groups, and judicial teams are actively working under a coordinated strategy to achieve the set targets.

The Chief Justice also directed that jail petitions concerning under-trial prisoners be streamlined and expedited. The court has decided to introduce a clear and predictable timeline from filing to final decision in such petitions.

Reaffirming its commitment, the Supreme Court vowed to maintain a zero-tolerance policy against stagnation in criminal proceedings.