PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION IN PAKISTAN: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF ITS ROLE IN PROMOTING SOCIAL JUSTICE

Abstract

The concept of Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has become a crucial constitutional instrument in Pakistan for combating systemic injustices and enhancing social equity for oppressed populations. PIL allows individuals, civil society groups, and public activists to appeal to higher courts against administrative failures, environmental degradation, bonded labour, and breaches of fundamental rights by lifting traditional locus standi dogmas and allowing representative or public-spirited petitions. This paper will follow the history of PIL according to Article 184(3) of the 1973 Constitution, the most important jurisprudential cases in its development, and its pros and cons in the implementation of the socio-economic rights. The review singles out certain notable remedial inventions, such as the extension of mandamus and monitoring committees, and recurring problems such as judicial over activity, politicization of petitions, lack of procedural transparency, and ineffectiveness of enforcement. To uphold the remedial power of PIL and safeguard the constitutional boundaries, the paper recommends a doctrinal clarification, procedural defence, greater judicial power, statutory guidance, and more legal aid to ensure that PIL remains a useful, effective instrument of inclusive justice in Pakistan.