Our saviours

Despite separation in time, Ziaul Haq & My Lords have one thing in common: belief that only they can save Pakistan.

There is a lot that Mr Rehman Malik can be attacked for and he frequently is. One would have thought that Mr Malik would perhaps be an easy adversary for the Supreme Court. Apparently not, the Court felt compelled to observe rather grandly that he was no longer “Sadiq” and “Ameen” and hence not eligible to be Member of Parliament. Let us leave the dual nationality debate aside, just for a moment. The charge is a basic one, namely that Mr Malik has misrepresented in an affidavit. The charge did not require an excursion into the realm of the spiritual.

The permit for this godly task is given in Article 62(f) of the Constitution which while laying down the qualifications for membership of parliament requires, “he is sagacious, righteous and non-profligate, honest and Ameen”. The Article inserted by the theatrical fanatic, Ziaul Haq, has other equally high moral requirements including, “he is of good character and is not commonly known as one who violates Islamic Injunctions”, “he has adequate knowledge of Islamic teachings and practices obligatory duties prescribed by Islam as well as abstains from major sins”. Never mind the fact that these requirements are nonsensical in a representative democracy, where the only major requirement is getting enough votes. There is very little wiggle room in these provisions, although being optimistic it does allow some violation only if someone is discreet enough for that not to be “commonly known”. Of course, there are always “minor sins” to take consolation in. Even so, suppose that in a moment of piety we really do wish to enforce these provisions on our elected representatives; who would you trust with this task?

The Constitution does not explicitly require the judges to comply with these stringent requirements. However, intuitively if the role of the grand mufti is to be assumed then clichés like those about Caesar’s wife, glass houses and casting first stones, etc do come to life. Surely a non-Sadiq and Ameen would not be the right person to shoulder this grave responsibility. Then, the conspiracy theorist would ask the hypothetical question of whether those who have previously taken oaths under the PCO are still “Sadiq” and “Ameen”. The malicious conspiracy theorist should be dismissed with “contempt”, however the question does cause some discomfort. This is not the first time that the Supreme Court has felt the need to summon Ziaul Haq. The major charge against the ex-PM, Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani, was bringing the Court into ridicule. The relevant Article 63(1)(g) inserted by Zia reads, “…for propagating any opinion, or acting in any manner, prejudicial to the ideology of Pakistan, or the sovereignty, integrity or security of Pakistan, or morality, or the maintenance of public order, or the integrity or independence of the judiciary of Pakistan, or which defames or brings into ridicule the judiciary or the Armed Forces of Pakistan…”. This article alone has the potential of silencing not only free speech but all speech.

The mutilations to our legal system made by Ziaul Haq have been with us for some time now. All successive governments share the blame for not purifying it. Yet, there was always an unspoken agreement that even while these disgraceful provisions remained on the books, they will not be invoked. That has changed now; Ziaul Haq is de rigueur. One possible explanation could be a personal fondness of My Lords for Ziaul Haq. However this explanation does not seem to be very convincing. More likely is an institutional affinity between the two.

Ziaul Haq believed he was the “Messiah”. This belief in his almost divine mandate prompted him to take indecent liberties with our Constitutional framework. He declared himself to be Mard-e-Momin and without embarrassment publicly talked about having visions guiding him. While stifling dissent and having political opponents eliminated he believed a la, Mein Kampf to be carrying the “handiwork of god”. Here was a man not willing to allow technicalities like “due process” or abstract concepts such as “natural justice/rule of law” stand in the way of his mission of instilling piousness in our society in general and legal system in particular. Although he got an unbelievably subservient judiciary, even then they could not completely enforce the intention of Zia. It was not for any voice of conscience on the part of the Zia judiciary. It is for the simple fact, that with most religious or saviour instincts one really has to believe in the mission to go the entire distance. Most of the Zia judges were with him because of spinelessness and not because they had delusions of grandeur.

Now, with the utmost of respect I come to the present Honourable Supreme Court. Let me say this at the outset, My Lords are gentlemen of unimpeachable integrity and unparalleled legal wisdom and are driven by the purest of motivations. My Lords seem to have come to the conclusion that this state is being run by corrupt, incompetent fools and there is no one else left to save this country; except My Lords themselves. And, indeed they have taken it upon themselves to carry this heavy burden of destiny all by themselves. The letter will be written even if it means that all other affairs of the state are brought to a standstill, and those whining about the Master Arsalan, Asghar Khan petition, missing person case or NLC, etc are agents on the payroll of these corrupt politicians out to malign the judiciary. The references to Ziaul Haq’s provisions are inevitable and will increase given the current trajectory. Despite being separated in time, Ziaul Haq and the My Lords have one thing in common; the belief that only they can save this country. The “Messianic” intent has finally converged with “Saviour” enforcement. The manual is already in place, it was only the belief that was lacking previously. I would personally want My Lords to formally announce the “Caliphate” already; in the meantime they will have to make do with Zia.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 30^th, 2012.