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ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court’s detailed verdict rejecting the review petitions of the Sharif family members against its July 28 order has caused uproar in political circles with opposition parties and the legal fraternity taking opposing sides.
A hard-hitting statement issued by the Pakistan Muslim League-N, after a meeting chaired by deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif at the Punjab House, prompted a harsh response from the opposition parties, including the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and the Pakistan People’s Party, which lashed out at the ruling party for its direct criticism of the judiciary.
The PML-N, however, found support from a section of the legal fraternity when prominent lawyer and activist Asma Jahangir voiced concern over the language used by the judges in their order.
The PML-N through a statement “rejected” the court order which, it said, contained some “inappropriate remarks”.
Asma Jahangir deplores language used in SC judgement
It alleged that the judges had tried to “influence” lower courts and said, “...the bench through its order has... also before time announced the judgement in the appeal (to be filed later).” “The detailed verdict is a very unfortunate example of malice, enmity, anger and provocation from beginning to the end,” says the statement, adding that “the use of insulting and humiliating words for Mr Nawaz Sharif (in the verdict) cannot be a matter of pride for any court in the world.”
The party also took a strong exception to the use of poetry by the judges only for, what it states, raising the issue of “leadership.”
“The nation knows that it were the (political) leaders who had founded this country and offered sacrifices for it. And they (political leaders) have made this country a nuclear power. They have suffered jails, sent on exile and were hanged. But still they were declared disqualified,” says the statement, while indirectly criticising the July 28 verdict of the SC court disqualifying Mr Sharif as member of the parliament for not disclosing his Iqama (residence permit) for Dubai. The PML-N also made an indirect attack on judges for validating military rule in the past and taking the oath from the dictators.
“The doctrine of necessity was invoked to provide justifications and orders that allowed the dacoits to operate. Orders were issued allowing the dacoits to play with the Constitution. The question spreading over 70 years is that of justice and not the leadership,” it says, adding: “The leaders are facing the courts even today. We would like to know where are the dacoits?”
It ended with the same verse quoted in the SC ruling, but with one word changed to imply that Pakistan’s current socio-political turmoil was a result of the apex court’s inability to provide justice.
Tu idhar udhar ki baat na kar, yeh bata qafla kyun luta / Mujhe rahzanon se gila nahi, mujhe teri munsafi ka sawal hai (Do not beat about the bush, tell me why the caravan was robbed; I have no complaint with the dacoits, but the question is about your justice), concludes the statement.
Meanwhile, PTI chairman Imran Khan, through a statement on a social media website, lashed out at the ex-PM for his open criticism on the judiciary.
“Nawaz Sharif should be ashamed of himself for openly attacking judges of the Supreme Court simply because they exposed his ill-gotten money and corruption,” Mr Khan said in a message on his official social media page.
PPP co-chairman Asif Zardari said by declaring judicial verdict as judges’ anger, Mr Sharif had exposed his “anti-democratic agenda” and it validated the PPP’s stance that in the prevailing situation, holding a meeting with Nawaz Sharif or any cooperation with him would mean becoming his collaborator in his anti-state conspiracy.
Talking to PPP leaders, the ex-president said, “One hand, ... Shahbaz Sharif and federal ministers issue statements against me and on the other, they send messages to me for a meeting.”
Asma Jahangir, talking to reporters, regretted the remarks passed by the judges, saying judiciary believed that all the institutions had failed and only it could bring improvement in them.
Ms Jahangir said that never ever the court had disqualified a person on corruption charges while hearing petitions under Article 184(3) of the Constitution.
“We should all ponder as to who has fooled us and when” she said while referring to an observation of a judge in the SC that “one cannot make fool all the people all the time.”
“We know that politicians are not clean. But we cannot be fooled that he (Nawaz Sharif) has been removed because of dishonesty,” she said.
Published in Dawn, November 9th, 2017
