Equality before the law: Senators ask judges to come clean on dual nationality

Farhatullah Babar secures Senate’s approval to debate issue within 3 days.

ISLAMABAD:

Senators criticised Supreme Court judges on Tuesday by expressing doubt that some of them may be dual nationals and were perhaps trying to cover it up.

The temperature rose during the question-answer session in the upper house when talk turned to whether any Supreme Court judge was a dual national. “I have great respect for the Supreme Court”, said Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) Saeed Ghani, “but I believe there are some judges who are dual nationals”.

Dual nationality recently became a sore subject as the Election Commission has said that it disbars anyone from being elected in Pakistan. The debate also surfaced in the Supreme Court when it asked whether a dual Canadian national such as Dr Tahirul Qadri, a cleric with political leanings, could question an institution such as the election commission.

Babar also secured the approval of the Senate “to discuss a matter of sufficient public importance” arising out of the reply given by the Supreme Court regarding the issue. The senator also submitted a written motion on the subject that was also signed by Senator Aitzaz Ahsan for a first ever parliamentary discussion within three days.



The Supreme Court’s registrar has yet to respond to the Senate. “As the [Supreme Court] registrar has failed to answer… despite repeated requests by the law and justice ministry, doubts and fears surround their loyalties,” observed PPP Senator Farhatullah Babar. The question applies to any such judges in the high courts, Federal Shariat Court or the apex court.

Law Minister Farooq H Naek said he would ask the registrar again to submit the details. The Federal Shariat Court had informed him that none of its judges were dual nationals, but they were waiting to hear from the high courts. He stated that the apex court had repeated its earlier stance that neither the Constitution, nor the code of conduct for judges prevented a dual national from becoming a judge of the superior courts.

Taking exception to this reply, Babar said that regardless of whether the Constitution placed any embargo, he wanted to know whether there indeed were judges possessing dual nationality. “Our honourable judges are all wise and all knowing and I cannot believe that twice the Supreme Court misunderstood a straight forward and simple question,” he said, wondering as to why an evasive reply had been given.

“There is a possibility that some Supreme Court judges may hold dual nationality,” Babar said, adding that the registrar’s lack of cooperation when it came to questions from lawmakers was tantamount to contempt of the Senate.

“If a member of parliament, the army, a civil servant cannot hold dual nationality, then a judge should not either,” Babar said.

Babar said that he did not believe any judge had taken an oath of allegiance to the Constitution and monarch of any foreign country, but the reply given had created doubts that needed to be dispelled for the sake of the law and the prestige of the honorable judges.

He added that it was important a categorical assurance be given that there were no dual national judges regardless of whether the Constitution permitted it or not.

Senator Babar Awan observed that the registrar should be referred to two Senate standing committees — on Privileges and Law and Justice — because he had failed to respond to their queries. “Every citizen shall have the right to have access to information in all matters of public importance, subject to regulation and reasonable restrictions imposed by the law,” he said, quoting Article 19 (A) of the Constitution.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 6^th, 2013.