Using Parliament to hide corruption

The judiciary is an indispens

able part of governance and

an efficient and independent judiciary is the greatest guarantee of well being of society. Judicial independence is the principle that judges must decide cases fairly and impartially without any fear, relying only and only on the facts and the law. By necessity, it also requires freedom from outside influence or political intimidation, both in considering cases and in seeking the office of judge. It is to the judiciary that is entrusted the task of keeping every organ of the State within the limits of power conferred upon it by the Constitution and the laws and, thereby, making the rule of law meaningful and effective. Courts are not established to follow TV talk shows & opinion polls or to try to discern the will of the people at any given time but rather are to uphold the law. In the governance of a democracy, judiciary plays a very important role, which is second to none.

The Constitution accords a place of pride to the judiciary by conferring the power of judicial review of legislative and administrative actions and entrusting it with the task of enforcement of the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution 1973. In successful democracies the rule of law has emerged to limit the whims of rulers by subordinating their acts to the law. This independence of judiciary is not established for the benefit of the judges, but rather for all of us; it is the citizens who are the intended beneficiaries of fair and impartial administration of justice consistent with the rule of law. The Supreme Court of Pakistan as a result of restoration after Musharraf era evolved into a more independent Supreme Court that actually issued a long series of rulings quite politically inconvenient for the regime of the day, is now badly under pressures. The way that the higher judiciary has been pulled into ongoing political debates has provoked some unease.

The historical judgments that Justice Chaudhry gave widened the gulf between the two sides. Now the executive branch of the country has made it a habit to invoke technicalities to evade compliance of court orders, even if compliance was still possible. With these unfortunate events, it is a relevant question now to ask: what happens when defiance of Court orders becomes the norm? It is very sad situation the PPP has learned nothing from past mistakes and constantly defying the orders of the apex court for the last about five years. Jut remember President Zardari on the memogate issue had said he will accept the decision of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security implying no-confidence in the judicial commission set up by the Supreme Court. Further, as the Zardari-led setup did not wish, under any circumstances, to reopen the cases of money laundering against Mr Zardari, the only course that could save him was disobedience of the court which he is doing very smartly.

The Supreme Court has recently given its verdict in contempt of court case against Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, which read that the premier had “willfully, deliberately and persistently defied a clear direction of the highest court of the country”. The verdict went on to state that the prime ministers defiance set a dangerous precedent, and may tempt others to follow his example which would lead to collapse of the administration of justice and judicial authority. Surely, defiance by Executive branch itself clearly amounts to emboldening the public to defy court rulings through “deliberate dismantling” of public confidence in the Supreme Court and the Judiciary. Interpretation of the law is the exclusive domain of the judiciary. Executive branch should have questioned court’s decisions through the judicial process provided for in the constitution and the law but is not entitled to flout them.

Now there have been many waiting for an opportunity to settle scores with Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry. Pakistan People’s Party-led coalition government got the Contempt of Court Bill 2012 passed on the basis of simple majority very hurriedly without any debate. Having no affection with the people of Pakistan President Zardari and his government failed badly in delivering any relief to Pakistani people during their complete tenure. Pakistan is facing some very crucial problems right now, suffering from unbridled soaring prices of daily consumables, no water to drink, no electricity but high tariff, no proper sanitation, sewerage systems, heavy taxations imposed on every activity or services offered by the government to the citizens, corrupt politicians, inefficient bureaucrats, and deteriorating public institutions, the people of Pakistan more deserve for solutions of their problems instead of such adventurism with the judiciary. In fact, the dilemma lies not in the effect that this attack by President Zardari have on the Chief Justice himself; the dilemma lies in the fact that ultimately, it is the institution itself—the Judiciary—which will bear the brunt of these assaults.

All the main accused in major corruption cases under review of the Supreme Court is directly related to this regime. They have to conceal their robbery. President Zardari wants to dismantle the present Iftikhar Chaudary-led judicial setup to leave back a pro-Zardari Supreme Court that could hide their misdeeds and also could help them in coming election. It is no doubt, that an attempt to remove Justice Iftikhar is coming as a result of the fact that some powerful people must have concluded on rigging the coming election and the only obstacle for them is Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry that might be an impediment at the Supreme Court that could truncate their efforts in the end. Of course, going by the records, Justice Iftikhar is a courageous, fearless and unbiased Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. He has made a great landmark within the shortest period of his leadership in the Supreme Court. He remains one of the few members of the bench that will not compromise the position of law in breach of his oath of office irrespective of pressure and threats. We call on Pakistanis to resist any attempt to forcefully incapacitate Justice Iftikhar through fraudulent, calculated and politically motivated arbitrary legislation. We condemn the act and we call for its immediate reversal.