ISLAMABAD, Aug 14: Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry said on Tuesday that actions made in the higher echelons of power should be subjected to the supreme law of the land as transgressing the Constitution and its spirit would ‘weaken us as a nation’.

“The recent struggle of the legal fraternity, duly participated by the civil society, reaffirms our commitment to the Constitution. It has served to give us strength and also brought the realisation that all actions made in the higher echelons of power will be subject to the supreme law of the land,” the chief justice said at the foundation stone laying ceremony of the Supreme Court Building, Phase II.

He said that in order to meet people’s expectations, the judiciary had to strive and deliver. He avoided answering questions when at the end of the ceremony journalists asked him about his reported meeting with the president’s Chief of Staff Lt Gen Hamid Javed. “Do not ask me, but the one who had a meeting,” he replied, adding that whatever he wanted to say he had said in his speech.

Supervised by the Capital Development Authority, the project to cost about Rs270 million is likely to be completed in two years with four more blocks added to the existing structure of the Supreme Court Building.

The ceremony was also attended by apex court judges, Justice Javed Iqbal, Justice Sardar Mohammad Raza Khan, Justice Faqir Mohammad Khokhar, Justice Mian Shakirullah Jan, Justice M. Javed Buttar and Justice Nasirul Mulk, and Attorney-General Malik Mohammad Qayyum. Chairman CDA spoke about the salient features of the project.

Sometimes, in the interest of clarity of mind, the chief justice said, it was helpful to provide visual representation of ideas and ideologies. The building situated on the Constitution Avenue was one such example. Firstly, the location ‘Constitution Avenue’ is symbolic. The boulevard connects all three pillars of the state namely the judiciary, the executive and the legislature, reminding us that the Constitution is the chain connecting the three institutions.

This building with its facade in white marble depicts an open book: the Constitution of Pakistan, which within it holds the universal symbol of justice, the scale, he said.

As a guardian of the Constitution, the Supreme Court is entrusted to protect, preserve and defend this sacred document. The grandeur of the building serves to reflect the majesty of the tasks assigned to the judiciary which is upholding the Constitution, maintaining rule of law and dispensation of justice, he said.

For courts to be truly temples of justice, bricks and mortars will not suffice. It is human endeavour and true commitment to the Constitution and law that will enable this court to function, fulfilling the legitimate expectations of the people of Pakistan, he added.

Sixty hears is a lifetime and certainly more than the average life expectancy of a human being living in this part of the world, he observed, adding we could not be relieved of our responsibilities by complaining about the paucity of time. Let us pause today and reflect upon the legacy of the first generation of Pakistanis.

“We must learn to live as a proud nation upholding the principles of law and constitutionality by severing ties with such anachronism that did not befit free and democratic nations.”

The chief justice also recalled the August 11, 1947 speech of Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah to the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan: “I shall always be guided by the principles of justice and fairplay without any prejudice or ill will or in other words partiality and favouritism. My guiding principle shall be justice and complete impartiality and I am sure with your support and cooperation, I can look forward to Pakistan becoming one of the greatest nations of the world.”