ISLAMABAD:
The Supreme Court’s (SC) detailed verdict on Asghar Khan’s petition announced on Thursday made it very clear that ‘illegal orders’ should not be obeyed.
Declaring that Gen (retd) Aslam Beg and Lt-Gen (retd) Asad Durrani acted independently while bribing politicians and rigging the 1990 elections, the verdict absolved the armed forces from any responsibility for the act. It added that both generals’ actions had defamed the institution.
The armed forces must remain confined to defending the country and upholding its Constitution, noted Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry in the detailed verdict on the petition.
The role of the country’s armed forces, perhaps for the first time in Pakistan’s history, came under debate in the aftermath of the SC’s short order on the petition. Two of the country’s former top military officials had been held responsible for rigging the 1990 elections to prevent Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) from coming into power.
Then Inter-Services Intelligence director general Lt-Gen Assad Durrani had actually admitted to the distribution of funds among politicians on then army chief Gen Beg’s instructions. Durrani had justified his actions by saying they were undertaken in the ‘greater national interest’.
Beg, in his statement, had also maintained that his and Durrani’s actions did not amount to misconduct since they were carried out under a lawful chain of command.
But the judgment very clearly stated that “if any such illegal order is transmitted, the same is not worthy to be obeyed.”
Commenting on the armed forces’ role, it stated that “a member of the armed forces must remain committed to defending Pakistan … against external and internal threats and, subject to law, acting in aid of civil power when called upon to do so by the federal government.”
“In the course of discharge of his duties, a soldier is obligated to seeing that the Constitution is upheld,” it added.
The 141-page judgment also commented on the president’s role.
“The President of Pakistan is not supposed to indulge in politics as it has been established in the role of President Ghulam Ishaq Khan [during his tenure]… [he] has no authority to create an election cell or support, in any manner, a favoured candidate or political party, either by issuing directions to the armed forces or to civilians.”
The court order also singled out defence authorities for failing to furnish details regarding an account of Gen Beg’s organisation ‘Friends’, where the record indicated Rs30 million – from the Rs140 million intelligence agencies allegedly obtained in 1990 for political purposes – were deposited.
While the court had directed the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to investigate charges against the two generals and politicians accused of accepting bribes from them, the agency maintained it could not probe the latter until the detailed verdict came out.
Meanwhile, Salman Akram Raja, Asghar Khan’s counsel in the case, told The Express Tribune that Durrani and Beg could be tried under article 6 of the Constitution – which defines the act of high treason, punishable by death – since they had subverted the Constitution.
“The issue of secret accounts that were maintained by secret agencies also required to be further investigated,” he added.
(Read: Detailed court verdict)
(WITH ADDITIONAL INPUT FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT)
Published in The Express Tribune, November 9th, 2012.
COMMENTS (7)
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This decision has made a lot many previous orders of the Supreme Court unconstitutional including the decision of the same judges. The Supreme Court has jumped from 1990 to 2008, on pick and choose bases, leaving aside the payments made by Nawaz Sharif to the Judges of Supreme Court is Justice Sajjad Ali Shah Case and many other similar cases. How about the decision of the court with regard to Balochistan Government??? Should the Governor go by the constitution or the orders of the Court??? More serious and detailed discussion on the case is required to avoid further administrative and legal problems. COAS is right when he says “Take a pause” and deliberate on your decisions.
The judgement has given a verdict of illegality about an order passed by the late President without hearing him.This is in itself a likely violation of Article10 of the constitution.It is only the late President who could reveal whether the then PM/ FG had advised him to pass and implement such an order. The court cannot declare the order of the highest authority of Pakistan unlawful on its own without giving very cogent reasons. The judgement has incited the armed forces from highest to the lowest to disobey an order passed by his superior based on his/ her personal interpretation of the constitution which has very serious implications for the National Security of the country.Those who are involved in this might be culpable of an act of sedition.
in the armed forces soldiers are trained to obey orders unconditionally. Those who question authority or disobey orders, legal or otherwise, are liable to court martial. the army cannot function if the subordinates are given the freedom to decide which order is legal.
Its interesting how individuals are blamed to absolve the institution , not bad we are getting there , the democracy in Pakistan is a hybrid , we have a long way to go..... The verdict is a small cautious beginning ,the Judges play cautiously and do what they have to do without ruffling too many feathers..... The constraints of tarnished past ia all around.....
The top court has given its judgment,Illegal orders should not be obeyed.:The question which comes to mind after reading this judgment is,:Should the Orders issued by the apex court itself,as in Zafar Ali Shah;s case,legitimising the coup by General Pervez Musharraf and the military leaders in October,1999,which is clearly unConstitutional should also not be obeyed.? Both the Generals who indulged in politics in the Mehrangate case & the Judges who wrote the Zafar Ali Shah Case Judgment were in breach of their Constitutional Oaths; and thus violated the Constitution of Pakistan.Both committed illegal acts.
What is missing in the verdict is that SC did not fix any responsibility on those who created the circumtances that led the generals and the incumbent president resort to such means to influence the election results eventhough those circumtances are (some of them) mentioned such as:
Placement of many AlZulfiqar terrorists and sympathisers on lucrative government jobs Helping India to crush Khalistan movement (Aitezaz Hasan delivered list of Khalestan leaders to India) Interfering in the Nuclear Program (Many politicians blamed BB having agreed to placing monitoring devices) Interfering in Armed Forces affairs (BB objected to Army holding excercises in Sindh) (Sale of Roosevelt hotelNYC to BB’s friend at a throw away price (Interfering and cancelling Zia UlHaq’s plane crash investigation) Zardari’s unchecked corruption and constant involvement in every large transactions and clain commision that included the cancelled Mirage 2000 deal with France …… and many more.
The armed forces felt that, BB’s continued stay in office was determental to the country as the first couple was acting against the interest of the state and they had to do something about it. However, the method they chose as not legal and justified and hence we have to deal with this saga.
Hope people can see the other side of the picture too..