November 11, 2007	Sunday	Shawwal 29, 1428

PESHAWAR, Nov 10: Justice Dost Mohammad Khan of the Peshawar High Court, who did not take oath under the Provisional Constitution Order, on Saturday said taking oath under it was unconstitutional and illegal.

“I have no regrets over what I have done because the step is in line with the Constitution and the order of the (seven-member) bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry,” he told journalists at his residence here.

“We have played our role and it is up to the civil society, political parties and lawyers now to come forward and play their due role,” he said.

He said that under the Constitution a judge of the superior court might only be removed through Article 209 on a recommendation of the Supreme Judicial Council. “Even a watchman cannot be removed from service in the manner in which the government tried to get rid of the judges.

“Officials concerned tried to convince me, and even some of my friends approached me on their behalf, requesting me to take oath under the PCO, but I declined as my conscience did not permit me to do so,” Justice Khan said.

When asked about the role of the judges who had taken oath, he said he did not want to comment because they were once his colleague. However, he added that once the SC bench had declared the imposition of the state of emergency and the PCO unconstitutional and restrained authorities from acting under it, there was no justification for judges to take a fresh oath.

“First, the government denied that any such order had been issued by the bench headed by Justice Iftikhar, then on the fourth day of emergency rule an eight-member bench of the PCO judges set aside the earlier order,” Justice Khan remarked, adding that the judges who had taken an oath under the PCO had no legal authority to issue that order.

“There is a golden principle of law which holds that no judge should be a judge in his own cause, but the judges who had taken an oath under the PCO violated that principle,” he said. Being beneficiaries of the PCO, he said, they should not have passed that controversial and unconstitutional order.

People, especially lawyers, in large numbers continued to visit his residence and pay their tribute to him.

A group of lawyers from his native Bannu district visited him and hailed the step taken by him. The visitors garlanded him and presented him a traditional turban. “You have made the entire Bannu district proud. You are great and have raised our heads,” said Wali Ayaz Khan, president of the Bannu Bar Association.

The delegation was led by Wali Ayaz, association general secretary Noor Raza Khan and senior lawyers Fareedullah Khan, Mohammad Anwer and Sultan Mahmood.

They faced some problems in reaching his home because the Race Course Road, housing residences of judges, was being guarded by police who tried to stop visitors from entering the area.