May 08, 2007	Tuesday	Rabi-us-Sani 20, 1428

LAHORE, May 7: Top constitutional lawyers agree that the condition in the country at the moment does not warrant imposition of an emergency, but they differ in their opinion about reasons that prompted Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz to hint at its possibility.

Responding to a question at his press conference in Islamabad on Sunday, Mr Aziz did not rule out the possibility of imposition of emergency in the country, saying the Constitution allowed the option but its use depended on conditions and circumstances as laid down in the book.

His statement came only hours after Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry had travelled to Lahore from Islamabad via GT Road at the head of a big procession of lawyers and political workers to address the Lahore High Court Bar Association. He was accorded an unprecedented welcome in Lahore by lawyers, political workers and general public.

Emergency can be proclaimed under Article 232 (Part-X) if “the president is satisfied that a grave emergency exists in which the security of Pakistan, or any part thereof, is threatened by war or external aggression, or by internal disturbance beyond the power of a provincial government to control”.

The constitutional experts say that proclamation of emergency creates at least two major divergences. First, the National Assembly gets powers to make laws for a province, clipping the provincial autonomy to that extent. Second, the National Assembly may make laws in violation of fundamental rights.They say the Constitution requires that the president seeks approval of his decision to proclaim emergency from the joint sitting of the two houses of parliament.

Some Supreme Court decisions given in the 1990s before President Gen Pervez Musharraf took over in October 1999 provide that the proclamation of emergency is not a “subjective exercise of powers”, which meant that the Supreme Court subject to judicial review any presidential decision to proclaim emergency in the country.

“I completely agree with you that the conditions at the moment are not such that an emergency is imposed,” Senator S.M. Zafar told Dawn by phone. “I believe that the prime minister was hinting (to the lawyers and the opposition parties) that the protests (against the suspension of the Chief Justice) should not be allowed to spill over (the streets) when he spoke about the option of proclamation of emergency. It’s kind of pre-warning -– don’t take the law in your hands; let the (Supreme) Court decide the matter. It was a reminder,” he said.

When pointed out that peaceful rallies and protests were apart of democracy, Mr Zafar said: “They (Mr Aziz) might have some information.”

Former judge Wajihuddin told this reporter on hone from Karachi that the prime minister’s statement could be part of the government’s plan to achieve certain objectives at the time of the expiry of the life of the National Assembly.

“I apprehend that the government is preparing the ground for extending the life of the National Assembly by up to one year close to the expiry of its tenure to get President Gen Pervez Musharraf re-elected by it,” he said. He said he had no solid basis for his apprehension except the political history of Pakistan.

Elaborating his point, he said if an emergency was proclaimed at a time "when the National Assembly is about to complete its life, its tenure can be extended for a period not exceeding one year. It would give an advantage to the ruling party (in getting Gen Musharraf re-elected as president) even if it fails to secure a majority in the new provincial assemblies whose tenure cannot be extended even during emergency and whose elections have to be held (after the expiry of the emergency).”

Former Supreme Court Bar Association president Abid Hasan Manto termed the prime minister’s statement uncalled for, saying it reflected that the government had panicked because of the ongoing protests and rallies of the lawyers and political parties.

“The government should understand that what is happening now is a consequence of its deviation from the Constitution. They should also know that their power to proclaim emergency can be challenged in the courts. The people are already challenging the use of such powers by the rulers,” he said.

He said the prime minister had hinted at using the option of proclaiming emergency just to harass the people and scare them to stay away from the ongoing protest against it. “The government wants the people to stay away from politics so that it can manipulate the elections results in its favour.”