KARACHI, May 9: The former minister and chief adviser to Late Khan-i-Azam Kalat, Khan Muhammad Hussain Khan, has advised the rulers to steer a middle course to resolve judicial crisis.Talking to PPI here on Wednesday, he said the present judicial crisis was a blessing in disguise for Pakistan, as the whole nation was now demanding the rule of law and uphold of the constitution.

He said a country without justice for its citizens could not be termed an Islamic state. He said lawyers and the masses were not struggling for the person of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, but for the independence of judiciary. He said this was the first time in the history of Pakistan that the Bar was struggling for the dignity of the Bench.

Mr Khan said even the International Jurist Commission had said if the judicial crisis were not resolved soon, the constitutional structure in Pakistan might be harmed beyond repair. He said the IJC representative, senior Malaysian jurist Dato' Param Cumaraswamy, who was Honorary Member and former Vice-President of the ICJ, besides stressing on the judicial accountability had said this crisis had to be resolved immediately.

He charged that ruling classes wanted to subjugate the judiciary.

He said Pakistan needed an independent judiciary and free media.

He said the nation was paying the price of its past mistakes. He said the present struggle of lawyers and the masses had been due since long.

He said an unchallengeable supremacy of the constitution was the key for the survival of the country.

He welcomed the stay order on the proceedings of Supreme Judicial Council and hoped that the nation would hear more good news soon.

Mr Khan said emergency was not the answer to the present problems faced by country. He said emergency was not declared during operations in Balochistan and Waziristan or when Akbar Bugti was killed. He said there were no circumstances at present that justify declaration of emergency. He said this was a very serious and sensitive issue, as just a statement about it had crashed the stock exchange.

He urged that such sensitive things should be handled with great care, as they might harm the interests of the nation.—PPI