No court shall take cognizance of an offence under section 5 of the Offence of Zina (Enforcement of Hudood) Ordinance, 1979 (VII of 1979), except on a complaint lodged in a Court of competent jurisdiction.

1. No court shall take cognizance of an offence under section 5 of the Offence of Zina (Enforcement of Hudood) Ordinance, 1979 (VII of 1979), except on a complaint lodged in a Court of competent jurisdiction.
2. The Presiding Officer of a Court taking cognizance of an offence on a complaint shall at once examine, on oath, the complainant and at least four Muslim, adult male eye-witnesses, about whom the Court is satisfied having regard to the requirement of tazkiyah-al-shahood, that, they are truthful persons and abstain from major sins (kabair), of the act of penetration necessary to the offence:
   Provided that, if the accused is a non-Muslim, the eye-witnesses may be non-Muslims.
   Explanation. In this section “tazkiyah-al-shahood” means the mode of inquiry adopted by a Court to satisfy itself as to the credibility of a witness.
3. The substance of the examination of the complainant and the eyewitnesses shall be reduced to writing and shall be signed by the complainant and the eye-witnesses, as the case may be, and also by the Presiding Officer of the Court.
4. If in the opinion of the Presiding Officer of a Court, there is sufficient ground for proceeding, the Court shall issue summons for the personal attendance of the accused.
5. The Presiding Officer of a Court before whom a complaint is made or to whom it has been transferred may dismiss the complaint, if, after considering the statements on oath of the complainant and the four or more eye-witnesses there is, in his judgment, no sufficient ground for proceeding and in such case he shall record his reasons for so doing.