Is judicial decay behind immolation of societal ethos and civil chaos?

Mohamed Bouazizi was, at least, lucky enough to stir a revolution as he set himself ablaze in Tunisia. It led to the Arab Spring in 2010, and the Middle East stands changed for all times to come. But Pakistan's Asif Javed was quite unfortunate as he self-immolated inside the premises of Lahore High Court. No one came to heed to the purpose of putting an end to his life, nor was the court of law bothered to dig deep into the malaise our society is infected with. Surprisingly enough, a probe was ordered to merely find out how gasoline made its way inside the premises of the court. The apathy is that Asif had been knocking at the doors of the court for years, seeking his eligible reinstatement, and his last words were: "Mujhe insaaf chahiye (I want justice)."

Asif, sadly, is unlikely to be the last one to have taken this bizarre route of extinction. Pakistan's traumatised social mosaic is full of many such horrible episodes where men and women opt for self-murder in desperation, as they have lost faith in the system in vogue. Denial of justice is one of the fundamental causes behind this reprehensible route. The tendency to commit suicide has risen in Pakistan owing to declining social mobility, incapacity of the poor to get two square meals, institutional discrimination and harassment at workplaces, and last but not least a jaundiced legal system that keeps a litigant in a zigzag of uncertainty.

According to WHO, there are around 10 suicides per 100,000 people in Pakistan. PIMS Islamabad claims that 40% of cases of suicide are burn victims who go over the brink in an aura of despair and disheartenment. Most of these children of a lesser god, who decide to take their lives, are sufferers of denial of justice. Even small cases pertaining to robbery, false allegations and mob arrests remain pending for months and years.

The Law and Justice Commission says that more than 2.26 million cases are pending in courts to this day. This is in addition to high-profile cases involving judicial review and constitutional interpretations that are more than 57,000. Official figures reveal that 82% of pending cases (i.e. 1.86 million) are at the district judiciary level. Lack of proper staff, corruption, mismanagement, political interference and waywardness of judicial officers, including police meddling, are factors behind low dispensation of justice.

There is also an emerging nexus between denial of justice and rise of parochialism, coupled with the tendency to opt for violence. From a societal perspective, it is leading to intolerance; and communities are refusing to see from the same prism of nationalism, as they have genuine grievances that are not being addressed by the state, per se. A lame duck and executive-subservient judiciary is an enigma, which has throttled public sentiments for realising an egalitarian society. Thus, lawful governance and constitutional supremacy take a backseat as justice is denied or delayed.

That is what is happening in Pakistan today as the judiciary for reasons of exigency, and undue influence from the executive, is not taking a stance. This is tantamount to negation of rule of law. The impugned 26th constitutional amendment is a case in point that has literally undermined the independence of judiciary, opening floodgates of political revulsion and social chaos.

With the Constitution and fundamental rights being ignored, there is hardly anything left with the common man to see a future for himself and his wards. Thus, self-immolation, civil disobedience, public dissent and law and order problems are a last resort. Perhaps that is why Winston Churchill was determined to see an independent judiciary functioning even in times of war so that public litigation is squarely taken care of.

The crumbling of judicial supremacy in Pakistan is taking a toll in the form of political instability and economic meltdown. Confidence of masses and businesses, local and foreign, originate from a rules-based society where law is supreme and duly accessible. If we can erect a law-abiding order, the decay can be stemmed and many more Asifs can live a cheering life of their own.