LAHORE, Dec 9: Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry said here on Saturday that Pakistan could achieve its goals, determined before its inception by political elders and philosophers, if all the state institutions were allowed to function properly.

“The 1973 Constitution enunciates a philosophical solution to all the present-day problems, social, political and economic, by way of establishing certain institutions to help achieve this destination. But, a matter of serious concern is that these institutions were not allowed to function (properly)”, the chief justice said at the launch of jurist Syed Afzal Haider’s book, “Islami Nazriati Council: Irtaqaee Safar and Karkardagi”. The book traces back the history of the Council of Islamic Ideology and its performance since it was established as a constitutional body to Islamise the laws in Pakistan.

Justice Chaudhry said Islam lays the maximum emphasis on fundamental human rights of the people, and any state which did not feel concerned about the rights of the masses could hardly be described as Islamic. He said that Muslim Ummah had the most dynamic, ideological and practical manifesto in the shape of the Holy Quran and Sunnah, and it was up to the intellectuals, jurists and legislators of Islamic states, particularly Pakistan, to guide the Ummah to adopt a way of life which was compatible with the modern-day requirements which also infused true Islamic polity.

He said the only pragmatic approach to solve the complex problems and challenges being faced by the Ummah in all spheres of life was to revert to the basic Islamic philosophy which continued to be the most precious asset. He said the Muslim scholars would have to review the whole mess once again to reach a way to life which was elaborated by the poet-philosopher, Dr Allama Iqbal, in his thought-provoking essays on the ‘Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam”. He said Dr Iqbal’s views on Islamic polity were based on modern interpretation of Islam in view of the changes that were taking place the world over.

Justice Chaudhry said Pakistan was soon completing 60 years of its inception. This, he said, might not be a long period in the history of nations, yet many of them had taken even a lesser period in attaining a stage of a welfare state only by keeping pace with the brisk development that was witnessed in the 20th century. Such a development could only be termed a modern day miracle, made possible only by allowing the state institutions to function and making them help mitigate people’s sufferings.

He said the Supreme Court had, of late, taken up several human rights issues by invoking its suo moto powers because the apex court was under an obligation towards the fundamental rights of the people as a custodian of their political, economic and social rights. He said those associated with the law, whether as judges or lawyers, were duty bound to redress the grievances of the people and create for them opportunities, which should have come their way through a normal process.

Senior jurists Dr Javed Iqbal, Mian Mahboob Ahmad, Abid Hasan Minto, scholar Dr Mahmood Ahmad Ghazi and the author of the book, Syed Afzal Haider, in their speeches on the occasion expressed disillusionment with the way Pakistan was being governed. They were of the view that the country remained in the `political’ grip of the clergy, which had time and again thwarted the modern interpretation of Islam. They said ‘ijtihad’ was the best course to grasp the essence of Islamic polity, and it alone guaranteed the emancipation of people from clutches of an exploitative system that ruled high throughout the Islamic world.