The constitutional crisis

It is incumbent upon the political class to ensure implementation on constitutional dictates

The political atmosphere in Pakistan is boiling up yet again, reverberating with allegations of betrayal being leveled by the ruling party against the opposition, drawing in turn counter-allegations of high treason.

The present situation is reminiscent of the Pakistan National Alliance’s (PNA) movement against former Prime Minister Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto which deepened the political polarisation in the country, ultimately leading to what is regarded as the worst martial law the country suffered during its 75 years of existence.

The story goes like this: the PPP had a landslide victory in the 1970 general elections. But the opposition PNA refused to accept the result. The PNA comprised nine political parties which had set aside their differences and got united under the one-point agenda of ousting Bhutto.

The PNA, whose member parties had a religious leaning, built the narrative that Pakistan and a liberal Bhutto could not co-exist. In response, the PPP led their campaign claiming itself to be anti-imperialist, a harbinger of progress, a liberator of the working class, and a unifier of the Islamic world. This political tug of war did not bring victory to any side, rather culminating in an 11-year-long martial law led by Gen Ziaul Haq.

That was not it. We witnessed a replay of the same events after Zia’s death in a plane crash. In October 1989, the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI), led by Mian Nawaz Sharif, tabled a no-confidence motion against Shaheed Benazir Bhutto. The country against underwent political chaos. Both the government and the opposition had had to detain their MNAs so as to prevent floor crossing. Still, several MNAs were lured away from one party to another. Benazir Bhutto also accused the President, the Army Chief, and intelligence agencies of sponsoring the move. Even though Bhutto survived the no-confidence motion, her government was dismissed barely a year later – in August 1990 – by President Ghulam Ishaq Khan who invoked the infamous Article 58-2(b) – inserted into the Constitution by military dictator Gen Zia – to send the first female prime minister of the Muslim world packing on charges of corruption. The National Assembly, as well as the provincial assemblies of Sindh and NWFP (now Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa), were also dissolved. Resultantly, the President declared a state of emergency and suspended fundamental rights.

In 1990, Nawaz Sharif was elected prime minister, but only to be dismissed three years later (in April 1993) by the same President on the same charges using the same constitutional tool i.e. Article 58-2(b). The Supreme Court of Pakistan did restore Sharif’s government. However, the government did not last long as both President Ishaq Khan and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif remained locked in political confrontation. This led to Army Chief Gen Abdul Waheed Kakar intervening; and the conflict only resolved with both the President and the PM being forced to resign, in July 1993.

Every few decades, the country witnesses political wrangling of a similar sort. Nationalist sentiments are evoked, religion card is used, political rivals are dubbed security risk – something that only causes mayhem and undermines democracy. In all this melodrama, it is the turncoats, particularly those from the feudal class, that benefit the most.

Today, the country once again finds itself mired in constitutional crisis which has deepened the social and political divisions among the masses. The PTI is accusing the opposition of serving as a tool in a regime change conspiracy orchestrated by a foreign power. On this pretext, the ruling party used Article 5 of the Constitution – which states that loyalty of the State is the basic duty of every citizen – as a means to thwart a no-confidence motion brought against Prime Minister Imran Khan. The opposition, on the other hand, says that the government has violated the Constitution by bulldozing the no-trust vote and dissolving the National Assembly.

Article 58 allows the President to act upon the advice of the Prime Minister to dissolve the National Assembly. However, after a no-confidence motion has been tabled against the Prime Minister, he cannot issue such an advice to the President. Therefore, the President cannot dissolve the National Assembly in such a situation.

Using Article 5 and drawing its link with Articles 58 and 95 for disallowing a vote of no-confidence is a farfetched idea. Besides, if the PTI believed that a foreign conspiracy had been hatched to overthrow the government, it should have pursued the matter legally and had launched a thorough inquiry.

The whole political drama has once again put the turncoats in the spotlight. These political personalities are out to benefit once again only to further damage democratic values and political ethics. Accommodating such individuals is a disservice to democracy. Political parties should have, by now, learnt to keep away from these opportunists. This is one of the reasons that our political process has become too tainted, and we have failed to develop a strong political convention, which is a sine qua non for democracy. No wonder a majority in the country are disillusioned with the political process.

As regards the prevailing constitutional crisis, all eyes are on the Supreme Court that has taken a suo motu notice of the situation. There is hope that the Constitution will prevail in the wake of the top court’s decision. As a custodian of the Constitution, the impending Supreme Court decision must uphold the rule of law and constitution as well as fundamental rights of the people, which also include the right of the elected members to vote in the National Assembly without any hindrance.

It is, however, incumbent upon the political class to ensure implementation on constitutional dictates. A successful democracy requires high integrity, political loyalty, and observance of political conventions on the part of our politicians.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 7^th, 2022.

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