Rulers would soon realize mistakes: Justice Iftikhar

ISLAMABAD—Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry has said that constitution and laws cannot be framed to meet the whims and caprices of a single individual who thought himself as all wise and above the law. Responding to questions delivered to him through a “credible servant of the nation”, the CJP said that the law and judiciary didn’t need any weapons to implement its decisions and the rulers would soon realize their mistakes that the law and judiciary is very powerful and its wings cannot be cut so easily.
He said the emergency was just a matter of days and the rulers should fulfill their constitutional obligations under which they have taken oath as public servants. He appealed to the nation to rise to the occasion and offer supreme sacrifices for restoration of the constitution and supremacy of the law. “The struggle for the restoration of the constitution and supremacy has entered a new phase and the nation should not lag behind at this critical juncture,” he said.
“This is time for sacrifices and action as the constitution has been tore up into pieces and there is no laws that protect fundamental rights of the people,” he maintained. “The judges, lawyers and the nation at large would not sit at rest as they have done in the past and I am very much optimistic that the situation prior to November 3 will be restored soon,” Mr Chaudhry observed.
A seven member bench of the Supreme Court had set aside the proclamation of emergency in the country and asked all judges not take oath under the Provisional Constitution Order so the current judicial set up was unconstitutional and unlawful in the light of that decision and the new appointments in the Supreme Court and High Courts are illegal, he pointed out.
He said the judiciary was not protecting terrorists rather a high level committee had been constituted having one judge each from all high courts in the country to expedite cases relating to terrorism. The committee used to meet regularly every month to review cases related to terrorism, he said and added no one can be punished in the absence of proofs against them.
Justice Chaudhry said that the divisional bench that gave verdict in case related to Lal Masjid was comprised of Justice Nawaz Abbasi and Justice Faqir Muhammad Khokhar who have taken oath under the PCO.
To a query about maltreatment with him by the government, he commented that he firmly believes in God Who Gives life and death. “I firmly believes in God, ideology of Pakistan, law and constitution and am optimistic that the struggle for the restoration of the constitution and supremacy of law will succeed and names of those who render sacrifices in this regard would be written in golden letters. And those who are violating the law would realize their mistakes very soon.” Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry is very optimistic and is suffering from no stress or tension in the wake of the proclamation of emergency in the country by the Chief of Army Staff/president, said a credible public servant who recently met him.—Agencies