An ultra vires surprise!

Sunday wasn’t a closed day as far as the State of Pakistan was concerned. The Supreme Court intervened in the high-drama of politics enacted in the National Assembly. Through a pronouncement, the apex court ruled that all that happened in the house, including the dismissal of the no-trust motion by the Deputy Speaker, and subsequent dissolution of the assembly by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister, is subject to the court’s order. A three-member bench issued notices to all the stakeholders, including the President of Pakistan and the Defence Secretary, hoping to dilate over the constitutional trajectory of the day, and see to it whether it has been transgressed or not. The honourable bench, however, refused to be judgmental, and the post-noon status quo of the day prevailed.

The proceedings of the day started with a thundering note read by the law minister, who drew the attention of the Deputy Speaker towards Article 5 of the Constitution, and referred it in the context of ‘letter-gate’, and the alleged conspiracy to dislodge the government at the behest of a foreign power. Momentarily, as the minister finished with his written script, Deputy Speaker started reading out from a prepared draft and went on to prorogue the house by dismissing the no-trust resolution as non-maintainable and infructuous. Apparently, this was the surprise promised by the PM. But for many it was no less than a shock and awe. All on the floor of the house were taken aback for a moment, and since then on it was a damage control strategy in the making.

The opposition exhibited defiance and refused to take the flak, terming it ultra vires to the constitution. As a scene from President Boris Yeltsin’s embattled parliament, the house went into a session with ex-Speaker Ayaz Sadiq in the chair to ‘overrule’ the morning’s ruling of the house. It also conveniently exhibit its numerical strength – and ruled that the no-trust motion stands ‘carried’. Then onwards, the theatre has moved to the Supreme Court, which understandably plans to look into the whole sorry saga. History is yet to be interpreted and written.

It goes without saying that the spirit of democracy wasn’t played well. The PM, who was himself a great trendsetter in sports, should have read the writing on the wall. He was on a weak wicket, and couldn’t chase the score of 172 needed to stay in power. He should have taken a backseat and let the opposition take on the baton. Secondly, even if he had been voted out on the floor of the house, havens would not have fallen. He would have been an asset to democracy and electoral politics as the leader of the opposition, and could have pursued more scholarly his agenda of self-reliance and an independent foreign policy by putting the new government in the dock. A graceful exit with humility would have boosted his stature, at the expense of a divisive and wayward opposition. But that wasn’t the case, as he was wrongly advised to fight a losing battle, and that too at the cost of constitutional supremacy of parliament.

In this bizarre tug-of-war, there is nonetheless some consolation. And that is the proven neutrality of the armed forces, and the composed configuration of the Establishment. This is a good omen. It is good to see, at least, that the Executive, the Parliament and the Judiciary are all claiming their due constitutional space and asserting their writ. It is a worthy achievement for the people of Pakistan who awe and aspire for representative rule. One hopes this constitutional hiccup too would be a passing reference in our chequered politics, and institutions will triumph over personalised whims and wishes.