LAHORE: A lawyers’ roundtable conference on Saturday questioned the oft-repeated argument of legislators about the supremacy of parliament, declaring that it is, in fact, the Constitution that is supreme.

Prominent among those who spoke at the conference titled “Sanctity of the Constitution and Judicial Independence in Pakistan” were Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan, Hamid Khan, Sardar Latif Khosa, Khwaja Tariq Rahim, Abid Zuberi, Rabbiya Bajwa, Salman Akram Raja and Anwar Mansoor Khan.

PPP leader Aitzaz Ahsan said no one, including the prime minister and army chief, could defy the Supreme Court order about holding elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He said it was obvious that the defiance of the apex court’s order would lead to contempt proceedings.

Mr Ahsan, Mr Khosa and Khwaja Rahim hosted the conference, which was attended by lawyers mostly belonging to the Hamid Khan-led Professional group and the PTI’s Insaf Lawyers Forum.

Aitzaz says defiance of SC poll order will trigger contempt proceedings; minister says conspiracy to divide legal fraternity will fail

He believed that the core issue at present was whether elections in the two provinces should be held within the constitutional timeline of 90 days. He said the debate on the composition of benches and the question whether the SC’s order for polls was majority or minority had no significance.

Hamid Khan said it was unfortunate that everyone was doing his own interpretation of the Constitution. He said people calling for a joint general election in the country were incorrect in their interpretation as it was not written in the Constitution. He said all institutions were bound to obey the SC’s orders. He said lawyers had a prime responsibility to stand with the Constitution and judiciary.

Mr Khosa, who held the offices of Punjab governor, attorney general, senator and PPP’s secretary general during the party’s stint in the government, said he preferred to stand by the Constitution and the country. Last week, PPP removed him as president of the party’s legal wing following his criticism of the policies of the coalition government.

Supreme Court Bar Association president Abid Zuberi stressed that all institutions were subordinate to the Constitution. He said if the government wanted to delay the election, it should introduce a constitutional amendment. He believed that Constitution did not allow any legislation to clip the powers of Supreme Court.

Lahore High Court Bar Association vice president Rabbiya Bajwa said politicians should stop saying that parliament is supreme, adding that in fact it is the Constitution that is supreme. Where was the supremacy of parliament when it gave extension to an army chief and endorsed establishment of military courts, she asked.

Ms Bajwa said holding elections in Punjab and KP was a constitutional mandate and political parties should not violate it.

Senior lawyer Salman Akram Raja said sanctity of Constitution was not possible without an independent and united judiciary. He said defiance of the 90-day timeline for general elections was in fact a disobedience of Constitution. Former attorney general Anwar Mansoor Khan urged senior lawyers to play their role to bring unity among the judges. He said it was written in the preamble of the Constitution that the state was supposed to be run by the elected representatives.

However, he added, it was also written in the same book that Constitution had to be followed. He said it was a mistaken concept that parliament was the only supreme institution.

A statement issued by the hosts said elections to Punjab and KP assemblies be held at once as per the dictates of the Constitution as elucidated in the SC order.

It said SC’s internal issues be decided by the judges themselves through comity of judges and mutual respect. Any permissible legislation to regulate the court or its processes ought not to be deployed, to destroy the court, its independence and authority.

Separately, Federal Minister for Law and Justice Azam Nazeer Tarar said that conspiracy to divide the lawyers’ community will not succeed, PPI adds.

Published in Dawn, April 16th, 2023