Judicial


By Emaad Qureshi Emaad.qureshi@gmail.com

09March 2007 Friday was just another day when a presidential reference was filed against sitting Chief Justice according to article 209 of the constitution of Pakistan on the charges of corruption and misconduct. Then this reference became the cause for lawyers’ movement .They say they are struggling for the independence of judiciary but critics have some concerns about this movement.

Critics say that why the deposed Chief justice Ifthikar Choudry was silent when political parties were trying to politicize this entire legal issue. When political parties were trying to convert this legal movement into Anti-Musharaff movement why he was silent? They were hoisting their party flags on his car and were arranging huge rallies for deposed Chief justice but why he never refused them?

Then came the series of Suo muo notices, Judges were issuing suo muo notices to administration for their every action e.g. Traffic jams, inflation etc but no Suo muo notice to Ex-Chief justice who was attending huge political rallies and who was becoming cause one of the biggest traffic jam of Pakistan’s history while traveling Islamabad to Lahore.

Then came the historic judgment of 20th July in which 15 member larger bench of Supreme Court declared Ex-Chief Justice Ifthikar Choudry innocent and reinstated him on his previous post. On that day everyone was happy and chanting the mantra of Independent judiciary and that now doctrine of necessity is buried forever. In August 2007 Supreme Court gave orders to release PML-N leader Makhdom javaid Hashmi from jail, again same voices of Independent Judiciary were coming out from everywhere.

In last week of August 2007 Supreme Court declared that PML-N leader can come to Pakistan and no one can stop him from coming to Pakistan, then again same voices of Independent Judiciary were coming out from everywhere.
Then Sher afgan niazi leader of Government spoke against the decision of Supreme Court in an interview with a private TV Channel, on this statement Supreme Court issued suo muo notice to Sher afgan of contempt of court.

Then Supreme Court allowed President General Pervaiz Musharaff to contest elections of President for the second time, this time surprisingly lawyers started protesting against this decision and many lawyers were tearing apart the decision papers in front of whole media, but this time Supreme Court issued no suo muo notice to any lawyer…but why?was that not contempt of court?? One more thing why they were protesting against this decision? Was that not a decision by an Independent Judiciary? Why this time they were not accepting this decision?

These type of things raises doubt in the eyes of common public and educated class that is this movement is for Independence of Judiciary or it has some other motives??


Writer is Political and Economic Commentator based is Rawalpindi