DefinePK

Abstract

This article will look into the prospects of ADR in criminal matters in the context of Pakistan. At present, ADR is being used to the extent of compoundable offences (Bhatti, 2023) where judges try to persuade the victims or their heirs to settle their grievances by forgiving the accused on mutual give-and-take basis with the help of a neutral expert or ADR center. Since the law relating to compounding had been incorporated into Criminal Code of Pakistan since long, it could not be said that restatement of the same principle in the ADR Act 2017 has added anything new to the system. Besides that, a number of new ADR techniques have been introduced in Pakistan, including Probation and Plea bargain, however, as their application is restricted to specific types of cases, their impact has been insignificant. In this article, it will be argued that there are two more techniques of ADR which should be experimented in Pakistan considering their practical importance in regard to promotion of ADR. These include, Victim Offender Mediation (VOM) (Ahmed, 2022; Zehr, 2002) and Restitution, both having their roots in Restorative Justice System. While the former is focused on healing, rehabilitation and reintegration, the latter emphasizes restoration of the damage caused. It is expected with their inclusion, practice of resolving criminal disputes through ADR will gain strength.