Schism between lawmakers and the superior judiciary appeared to grow deeper as parliament unanimously adopted a motion on Monday calling for filing a reference of “misconduct” against Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial.
The motion, moved by Dr Shazia Sobia of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), demands the formation of a special committee to file the reference against the chief justice in the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) for his “misconduct” and “deviation” from his oath.
Speaking on the motion, several lawmakers, including Defence Minister Khawaja Asif and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, called for a parliamentary probe into the judiciary’s undue support for Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan.
"In the 75-year history of the country’s judiciary, there were incidents which had a profound impact on the country, but recently a group in the judiciary has started supporting a political group," Asif told the house.
“That political support could be seen from the current decisions of the judiciary,” he said, adding: “time has come for parliament to send a reference of misconduct to the Supreme Judicial Council, under the authority and law given to it by the Constitution.”
He condemned the attacks on military installations, including the Corps Commander’s house in Lahore, a Rangers post in Karachi, the Army's General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi and the PAF Base at Mianwali.
Supporting the motion, Asif said that the reference against the chief justice should be sent to the SJC under Article 209 of the Constitution. He also demanded that another committee should be formed to examine the pending cases in the judiciary.
Taking the floor, Foreign Minister Bilawal ruled out further negotiations with the PTI unless the party tendered apology for torching the Jinnah House – the residence of the corps commander – in Lahore.
He urged the institutions to work within their constitutional ambits so that the government could concentrate on resolving the issues of the poor people. “The coalition is committed to protecting parliament and the Constitution,” he added.
Later in the day, Bilawal also spoke in the joint sitting of parliament, in which he condemned the deplorable incidents of May 9, including attacks on the GHQ and the Jinnah House and other public properties.
Read COAS 'not willing' to sit with Imran, interfere in democracy: Marriyum
“I have shouldered the coffin of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto for the sake of the country and its democracy,” Bilawal said. “The slogans raised on that day were met with President Zardari’s pledge of “Pakistan Khappay” [we want Pakistan],” he added.
“I raised the slogan of ‘democracy is the best revenge’ after burying my mother. We could have directed the people to [the then military ruler Pervez] Musharraf, the killer of the people’s leader.”
In a scathing attack on Imran, Bilawal said the former prime minister’s tactics included airing clips of a woman on television as a means to blackmailing the then National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chairman.
“A man who during his tenure, would not tire of singing NAB’s praises, and took sadistic pleasure in tormenting his political opponents, having Nawaz Sharif and his daughter arrested, along with the then leader of the opposition, who was a cancer patient,” he said.
“Today, Imran Khan is criticising the very same NAB that he was so fond of. Had someone from our side been involved in such a case, we would be put behind bars without a second thought,” he added.
“He says that the former first lady was a trustee, hence is innocent. Maryam Nawaz Sharif and Faryal Talpur were both trustees. Today, Imran Khan is benefitting from the same NAB amendments that we had brought forth.”
The foreign minister asserted that following Imran’s arrest on May 9, the PTI neither called peaceful protests nor it summoned political gatherings, instead, “it opted for a violent response and chose to act as a terrorist organisation” rather than a political party.
“It is unfortunate that while solidarity was shown with Imran Khan – from the Islamabad High Court to the Supreme Court – none was shown to the Jinnah House in Lahore or the GHQ,” he continued.
Turning to the chief justice Bandial, the PPP chairman said that instead of greeting a culprit by saying: ‘nice to see you’, the top judge of the country should have condemned the militant organisation and terrorism.
“It should have given Imran Khan the opportunity to choose between being a terrorist organisation or a political party,” he said, adding that the PTI had become habitual of attacking every institution.
Bilawal told the house that the PPP was not against elections, emphasising that they would combat the PTI with the NAB, rather through elections. “We have repeatedly defeated him [Imran], and we can do so now,” he added.
“We are asked why the elections did not take place. They should answer this question themselves. The one responsible for the political instability is not our institution [parliament] but the one neighbouring us [Supreme Court],” he said
The foreign minister reminded the house of its responsibility to redirect the system and democracy towards the correct path. He said all institutions should work within their constitutional domains for the betterment of the country.
Addressing the chief justice directly, Bilawal said: “If he meddles in politics and continues to give relief to Imran Khan – a practice that he has been following ever since he was a judge – then the system will not be able to function.”
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