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January 5, 2003
REVIEWS: A perilous path
For one reason or the other Pakistanis tend to remember, even dwell upon, their chief justices, past and present. And so, the appearance of another volume of memoirs from another gentleman who has shed the august robes of that office is not greeted with a tired yawn.
The chief impression is that Chief Justice (retired) Nasim Hasan Shah, possessed of no mean degree of academic distinction, has indeed a razor-sharp mind: it shaves off all that could be controversial or displeasing. The result is a series of memoirs and reflections of little consequence. That in itself is no mean achievement, considering the rulings. And, it has to be said for the doctor from the University of Paris, with a Diploma from the Institute of Higher International Studies, where he was ranked first: he is divertingly inconsequential.
It is impossible not to appreciate the dexterity with which he fields the ball. He does not come to grips with issues and subtly justifies them without becoming an apologist. He is hard to contradict, for he refrains from presenting enough material for serious debate or refutation. He is a master of ambivalence and that leaves one admiring the calibre of the intellect.
The outstanding exception is his commentary on the Kashmir dispute. His condensation of that historical issue; and orientation on possible resolutions is wise, progressive, and well-informed. It leaves one wanting to reach for his doctoral thesis, prepared and presented in 1953-54, on the question of a plebiscite between India and Pakistan on the Kashmir question.
Dr Justice Nasim Hasan Shah comes from a well-known family of Punjab with a respected tradition in law. With great inner strength, he overcame his health deficiency and instead of evading the public gaze or public life, Nasim Hasan Shah courts it. The need for acknowledgement propels him as a student and a young professional, and the non-retiring justice revels in the limelight. What he writes has a complacent flourish that, inevitably, can also often be redundant.
He spent 17 of his 26 years as a judge of the superior courts on the bench of the Supreme Court; and retired as its chief justice in April 1994. He was the acting chief justice in 1993, when, as an outcome of Mian Nawaz Sharif’s petition, the National Assembly was restored. As Justice Shah observes on page 115, “but not for long. Within weeks ... the Establishment managed to dissolve the Assembly. But this was no concern of the Supreme Court... The new Order was on the advice of the prime minister, and this was well within the meaning of the constitution.”
Chapters on what he calls “The perilous path of judicial activism” and a mainly re-capitulatory discussion of the law and martial law are informative and absorbing. But they are also glib. A man of his experience and abilities, with the disciplined academic training of a legal scholar has much to offer. His overview of Islamization and Anglo-Saxon laws and well-considered resumes of some landmark cases and judgments interest the lay reader.
But he allows expediency or discretion to be his supreme editorial guide. It is a pity that an editor did not labour more over organizing the presentation of the material. It reads like an admittedly valuable — but selective — collation of annotations for a main entree, which is never served.
Observations from the keen young barrister in contact with the country’s legal eagles; and random nuggets about student life and the intellectual giants peopling a Lahore in its cultural heyday can, however, be enjoyed and the anecdotal mode in this case is most appropriate.
He himself divulges he is an extrovert who loves a full social calendar. Among his extra-judicial enthusiasms is cricket. He was Chairman of the Board of Cricket Control, Pakistan. He tantalizes with glancing references to match-fixing and other controversies that raged as to captaincy, coaches and tours. A good judge in these matters, he does not take a cricketing stand. He delights quite unhesitatingly though in his access to the arcane aristocracy of the MCC and the chairman’s Box.
Is it a book it would be a pity not to read? Not exactly. But given the agreeable facility of its prose, it would be easy reading. Supremely speaking, it is all a matter of what one is looking for. And it’s not cricket.
Memoirs and reflections
By Nasim Hasan Shah
Alhamra Publishing, Saudi Pak Tower, Jinnah Avenue, Islamabad
Tel: 051-2823862
Email:
contact@alhamra.com
Website:
www.alhamra.com
ISBN 969-516-076-X
398pp. Rs595
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