DECADES of political instability, recurrent constitutional breakdowns and disastrous wars and insurgencies, coupled with the insatiable appetite of the elites — political, judicial, security, bureaucratic, business and landed — for wealth and power, have denied ordinary folk their due share in the economic pie and political decision-making.
In fact, the poor and powerless are the worst sufferers of a constitutionally degenerated order — mainly resulting from the failure of both the political leadership and the judiciary.
Barring some exceptions, the political leadership has largely played a deplorable role in the history of our democratic struggle. Both democracy and the people’s rights and liberties have been sacrificed at the altar of personal and political benefits. In many cases, ‘people’s power’ has been leveraged to get a better ‘deal’ from powerful quarters. Ideology and morality have given way to the consolidation of dynastic politics, again motivated by the relentless pursuit of power and pelf.
One or the other among the mainstream leadership has lent a shoulder to non-democratic forces at critical junctures of constitutional struggle. Until some years ago, the PTI-led coalition upheld the hybrid regime, acting as the junior adjunct of the establishment-dominated dispensation, while the opposition — particularly the PML-N and PPP —was mercilessly persecuted. The shoe is now on the other foot; the PTI is being battered by the PML-PPP coalition ostensibly at the behest of the powers that be.
The latter’s alternating cycle of conflict and conciliation with one or the other component of the political leadership has over the years crystallised into what has aptly come to be described as a hybrid regime — a combination of authoritarianism and plutocracy. Dominated by non-political influential quarters, it also includes an array of other forces — compliant politicians, ambitious elements in the judiciary, crony capitalists, landed interests and a highly politicised bureaucracy. These elites hold the handles of power, and can also be charged with appropriating much of the national wealth and resources, keeping the majority of the populace out of the politico-economic calculus.
It is no wonder then that 40 per cent of the population lives below the poverty line; every third child is out of school in this age of AI; three out of four persons are deprived of clean drinking water and sanitation; and millions live in appalling conditions in squatter settlements. Social disparity has also touched new heights. Pakistan’s top 1pc monopolises more wealth than the bottom 70pc, while 42pc of the country’s income is earned by the top 10pc of households; the bottom 50pc earn only 13pc. Yet, the minimum wage remains almost unchanged even during inflation. In contrast, the salaries and allowances of the top functionaries — judges, parliamentarians, the military brass and senior bureaucracy — have been substantially raised. Likewise, the industrial, financial and propertied classes also regularly receive generous subsidies and tax exemptions.
Who will or should protect the citizenry against state capture by a selfish elite?
Thus, the elitist state has, for ages now, ‘abandoned’ the masses — millions of jobless, underpaid, landless, homeless, marginalised, disenfranchised and caste-religion-gender-battered people. Many of the jobless youth are taking to drugs and even dying by suicide. Except for handing some periodic cash transfers to the poorest communities to garner support, the state and political elites are not willing to share the common wealth and resources with the people. Instead, the latter’s democratic voice and peaceful protests are met with force on the pretext of ‘national security’ and the maintenance of order. Interestingly, certain elements have lately started highlighting the tragic plight of the people caught up in the war-torn states in the Middle East and Africa, expecting to earn the people’s gratitude for keeping this country ‘safe’ and ‘unified’.
This raises questions: the country may be safe, but for whom? Are the common men and women safe — physically, economically, environmentally, socially, politically? Or, are they at the mercy of criminals, terrorists, inept and corrupt public functionaries, crony capitalists and retrogressive feudal-tribal forces? How is the country ‘unified’ when there exists a plethora of fault lines — social, political, ethnic, sectarian, regional, institutional and civil-military? Only a small and close-knit group of elites is unified, bonded by their common interest in keeping the current exploitative politico-legal order alive.
Against such a reality, the question that arises is: who will or should protect the citizenry against state capture by a selfish elite? The first responders in such situations are always the judges, who are regarded as the custodians of citizens’ fundamental rights, and are bound by their oath to “preserve, protect and defend” the Constitution. Aggrieved people — those who pay taxes, direct and indirect — go to the courts to seek redress against the wrongs committed by errant public functionaries. The annals of democratic struggles are replete with instances of the glorious role played by judges in support of the rule of law, particularly in India, America and Britain.
Unfortunately, in our case, with the exception of some courageous and independent-minded judges, the overall performance of our judiciary has been dismal in the context of the constitutional struggle. In fact, some of the saddest episodes of the continuing constitutional debacle have been overseen jointly by opportunistic politicians and ambitious judges, with the latter often providing authoritarian and rigged systems with legal and political crutches to prop them up. The 26th Amendment is a recent instance of the dubious role played by them. They have helped the powers that be create a ‘super executive’ at the cost of judicial independence, integrity and collegiality. Predictably, the newly created Constitutional Bench has already passed a series of controversial judgements. It has legalised civilians’ trial by military courts, validated the ‘permanent’ transfers of judges from one high court to another, and handed the ruling coalition the game-changing ‘reserved seats’ to further amend the Constitution, thus upgrading the existing hybrid system to, perhaps, ‘hybrid plus’.
Thus, it is clear that the emerging politico-legal order is going to make the rapacious elites all the more extractive and repressive, and yet, immune to accountability, with the hapless people being the easy prey. Until, of course, the wheels of history are turned against them.
The writer is a lawyer.
Published in Dawn, July 25th, 2025
