National Reconciliation Ordinance is a valid law, Pak Govt tells SC

Islamabad, June 8(ANI): The Pakistan Government has informed the Supreme Court that the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) is a valid law laid down under Article 89 of the Constitution.

In its reply seeking review of the apex court's December 16, 2009 verdict against the NRO, government's lawyer Kamal Azfar also contended that the NRO had the approval of the government of the day and the political parties, and was promulgated in national interest, rather than being a deal between two people.

"The NRO, therefore did lead to national reconciliation which benefited the whole country by bringing a stable and mature democracy," The Daily News quoted the reply, as saying.

The government further informed that the communication with Swiss authorities for reopening cases against President Asif Ali Zardari would be a futile exercise, as there were no pending cases that could be legally reopened.

Azfar said the proceedings pending in Switzerland against Zardari were already disposed, not only because former Attorney General Malik Muhammad Qayyum applied for withdrawal of the application, but also because it had been closed on merit by the Swiss prosecutor general in an order of August 25, 2008.

"It would, therefore, be an exercise in futility to now contact the Swiss authorities in respect of the proceedings, knowing well that they cannot be revived through such requests," the government's reply added. (ANI)