Justice Syed Shahid Bahar, a senior judge of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir High Court, decided 1,621 cases in the first 11 months of 2026, Kashmir Digital reported on Saturday.
According to the report from Muzaffarabad, Justice Bahar heard cases continuously at the high court’s headquarters in Muzaffarabad and at its circuit benches in Mirpur and Kotli, delivering judgments steadily through the year to ensure the speedy disposal of cases.
The report said the largest share of the decided cases came from the Muzaffarabad headquarters, where 1,349 cases were decided.
At the Mirpur circuit bench, 260 cases were decided, while nine cases were decided at the Kotli circuit bench and three at Rawalakot, taking the total to 1,621.
Justice Bahar’s performance over the 11 months from January to November was described in the report as a bright example for the judicial system, with one month of the year still remaining.
The report said the steady disposal of cases had begun restoring public confidence in the judiciary in Azad Kashmir.
It said the senior judge had kept hearings going without interruption at the headquarters and the circuit benches, and had ensured that decided cases were announced promptly.
Justice Bahar also served as the acting chief justice of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir High Court earlier this year, taking oath in May 2026 while the chief justice was on leave abroad.
The report said his record of deciding cases had no precedent in recent years, and described it as an example worth following for the rest of the judicial system.
It added that deciding cases promptly and earning a lawful livelihood through hard work was a practical example for the whole system of government.
The high court in Muzaffarabad hears constitutional petitions and other matters from across Azad Jammu and Kashmir, with circuit benches sitting in Mirpur and Kotli to bring the court closer to litigants in those districts.
The figures reported are those published by Kashmir Digital, based on the court’s own record of decided cases during the year.
