Islamabad High Court Chief Justice Athar Minallah said on Monday that the political leadership should stop fighting and move towards solving the country’s real issues.
The comments of the IHC Chief Justice came in light of the ongoing cases registered against journalists across the country. Journalists Arshad Sharif, Moeed Pirzada, Sami Ibrahim, judicial assistant and president of the Islamabad High Court Journalists Association Saqib Bashir appeared before the court.
Justice Minallah questioned “why every government that comes to power forgets the past”. “The Baloch students were being baton-charged by the last government, and the current government isn’t listening to them either,” he said, questioning whether the state thought it had any responsibility towards its people. There is no one to raise voice for the missing persons, the Chief Justice further maintained.
The high court expressed displeasure towards the federal government after the home secretary did not submit his response regarding the matter.
Chief Justice Minallah remarked that these problems will be resolved “if even half of the lawmakers currently embroiled in the struggles for power put in efforts”. He added that, “The state itself does not play any role to deal with the issues of violation of fundamental rights.” The court suggested the federal government devise a mechanism that facilitates filing complaints in one place by journalists facing any problem.
It later sought suggestions regarding a mechanism to deal with journalists’ complaints and granted the IHCJA president’s request for more time and adjourned the hearing till June 4.
