LAHORE, March 28: Justice Javed Iqbal (retired) says the Article 58(2)b is a constant threat to parliament and democracy cannot function properly in its presence.

The former Lahore High Court chief justice was speaking at a panel discussion on “The constitutional development in Pakistan” organised by the Pakistan Study Centre in collaboration with the Punjab University history department at the centre auditorium on Thursday. Mr Iqbal said it was the leadership crisis that the Constitution of Pakistan could not be framed in time.

Abid Hasan Minto said the Constitution was not only a judicial matter but also a political one. He argued that aristocracy was responsible for the hurdles in the way of working Constitution. He called for checks and balances outside the framework of Constitution.

Barrister Mujtaba Jamal advised the students to follow the optimism of will and avoid the pessimism of intellect.

He said the students were the future leadership of Pakistan and they should be innovative, creative and visionary in their own respective fields.

In Pakistan, he said, the constitution-making was stressed but pre-requisites of the constitution were not viewed. He, however, said the constitution could not go beyond the political reality and always matched with the ground realities.

Earlier, history department chairman Prof Dr Qalb-i-Abid said the difficulties in the constitution-making process was the prime cause of the problems faced by Pakistan during its checkered history. “Even the present coalition government is also confronted with the question how the 1973 Constitution can be restored in its original shape,” he said.