OPINION: Pak judiciary in the dock

The status of Pakistan is on the altar of sacrifice when both the giants of democracy - the judiciary as well as the executive - have taken off the gloves to demonstrate their respective authority.

The Chief Justice of Supreme Court of Pakistan with a three-member Bench in its order said that the Election Commission of Pakistan's postponement of elections to the Punjab Assembly was "unconstitutional". The court announced May 14 as the new polling date instead of Oct 8.

The Supreme Court order irked the coalition government of PDM and brought a Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Bill, 2023, in the parliament. Unfortunately, Pakistan President Arif Alvi on April 8 returned the Bill to the parliament for reconsideration in order to meet the scrutiny about its validity (if assailed in a court of law).

The judgment and the President's dissent note to the Bill further unnerved the ruling coalition government and thus changed Pakistan's political and judicial landscape. A section of judges in the apex court, a coalition ruling leader, a section of the bar association and the Army ganged up against the highest court of the country.

Lawyers' bodies are divided in an ongoing constitutional crisis as KP Bar Council has demanded Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial's resignation while Supreme Court Bar Association representatives belonging to professional groups, reiterated their support to the CJP. This Bar Association stands with the Supreme Court of Pakistan in upholding the rule of law and the Constitution, said Muytedir Akhtar Shabbir, Secretary, Supreme Court Bar Association.

In a hard-hitting statement, the federal government challenged the three-member Bench verdict and demanded a hearing by the Full Bench. The federal Law Minister also warned that the verdict would aggravate the current political crisis.

PML-N head Nawaz Sharif from London on the verdict in the election delay case demanded the immediate resignation of CJP Justice Bandial. But, Pakistan People's Party (PPP) distanced itself from the government's demand of seeking resignation from Justice Bandial and clarified that the demand as well as moving a reference was not of the entire coalition government but the PML-N alone.

The political observers describe the current political and judicial chaos as a virtual declaration of war against the top court, and pit the two institutions of the State against each other, with disastrous consequences. It would intensify the clash of institutions and deepen the constitutional crisis, bringing the country closer to a systemic collapse.

On the other hand, the military leadership is not in favour of early or scattered elections, with the Defence Ministry asserting that the armed forces would not be available for poll security duties because of the security situation. But non-compliance with the Supreme Court order and its consequences could be out of everyone's control.

In this scenario, the Army's direct involvement in declaring an Emergency could not be ruled out for both Pakistan and its institutions. Will General Syed Asim Munir be competent enough to handle Pakistan when it is socially, politically, economically and judicially derailed is a big question mark?

Surprisingly, a sizable splinter within the military-led establishment has tilted towards Imran Khan, demanding a second stint in power for him. They believe the present fiasco has percolated downwards as a result of the split in the superior judiciary, bureaucracy, police and the general public.

When the power-hungry class themselves are triggering chaos in Pakistan, why wouldn't the terrorists take the opportunity to escalate the violence to desired level? The literature produced and propagated by the Islamist terrorist groups, mainly Al-Qaeda, Islamic State-Khorasan and Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), has categorically revealed a strategy to remove the 'puppet' and 'corrupt' regimes through escalating chaos in society, either through violence or propaganda.

Meanwhile, senior lawyer and PPP leader Senator Aitzaz Ahsan in his loud and clear message to all stakeholders have said that elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will be held on time as per the verdict of the apex court. He stated that they would not let any conspiracy against the Chief Justice of Pakistan succeed; warning that the top judge of the country "is our red line".

Ahmed Bilal Mehboob, a renowned political and constitutional expert, feared that the current political and constitutional crisis could lead to civil unrest and ultimately to civil war, as all the indicators are pointing to that kind of situation. The expert, also the president of the Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency (PILDAT), warned that the situation could lead to creating further division if no one is ready to take a step back.

The ongoing tug-of-war is turning an ugly and chaotic situation that indicates the further disintegration of Pakistan like Bangladesh.

(R C Ganjoo is a senior journalist and columnist having more than 30 years experience of covering issues concerning national security, particularly Kashmir. He has worked with several prominent media groups and his articles have been published in many national and international publications.)

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of OneIndia and OneIndia does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.