ADDRESSING the legal and constitutional crisis arising out of the proposal to grant three-year extension in service to the incumbent Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa, the three-member bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Asif Saeed Khosa, delivered a smart judgement that takes care of sensitivities of all stakeholders besides meeting the immediate objective of averting the crisis from deepening. The court has put the onus of ultimate decision on Parliament which has been given six month’s deadline to make legislation on appointment and reappointment of the Army Chief and now it would be up to Parliamentarians to demonstrate far-sightedness in dealing with the ticklish issue in a comprehensive but careful manner.
The verdict of the apex court has widely been acclaimed by different segments of the society as it has brought to an end uncertainty and confusion on a subject that was being discussed thoroughly all over the country. Wild speculations were being made on the final outcome of the case and its possible implications for the system and the country but the judgement has brought sanity back to the discussion on the issue. Prime Minister Imran Khan also heaved a sigh of relief as he pointed out in a tweet that the verdict was a disappointment for those who expected a clash of institutions. No doubt, the balanced judgement of the court has not just averted that possibility effectively but put the national institutions in a position whereby they will have to work in a spirit of inter-dependence and reliance. There was a sort of perpetual enmity between the Government and the Opposition and if the tendency continued Parliament is bound to miss the deadline. Therefore, the Government will have to go for ceasefire as far as its treatment of the opposition is concerned and the other side too will have to come down from its hard position. The reconciliation that the verdict demands between the Government and the Opposition would be threatened by sharp reactions and careless selection of words. Both sides need to avoid acrimonious exchanges that have so far marred prospects of any national reconciliation, which is, otherwise, need of the hour in view of the grave challenges that the country is facing these days. The judgement is not a victory or defeat for anyone; rather it is about rule of law, the constitution and the supremacy of Parliament as well as continuity of the system. It takes fully cognizance of trichotomy of power as the court itself only interpreted the existing laws and looked into the relevant procedures and processes and left the job of legislation to Parliament. The court also gave repeated chances to the executive to resolve the crisis on its own and for this purpose it went to the extent of giving necessary advice as well on how to prepare the summary and who is competent to issue an order. Now all eyes are set on Parliament and hopefully it would not disappoint the nation. There is sufficient time at the disposal of the legislators, they should thoroughly debate different aspects of the legislation and come out with a law that is in the best interest of the country. It should be comprehensive one to take care of appointment and reappointment of other services chiefs as well including Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and naval and air chiefs. Taking clue of what happened during pendency of the case in the Supreme Court; the Government should also look into its working and take measures to plug loopholes. The legal team of the Government was anything but fully prepared and same was the position as far as those who prepared summaries are concerned. Preparation of summaries is a routine in ministries and divisions but the episode exposed serious lacunas including lack of knowledge about relevant rules, regulations and laws as well as grammatical and clerical mistakes. Same is the case with note-taking during important meetings as it has often been observed that minutes do not reflect true proceedings. Anyhow, by exercising judicial restraint, the Supreme Court has tried not to interfere in the domain of other pillars of the state and the spirit should be reciprocated by all state institutions.
