The PPP’s HR cell called for revisiting the former prime minister’s case on the eve of his 34th death anniversary. PHOTO: PID/FILE
Last year, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari demanded that the superior judiciary decide the pending presidential reference regarding Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s execution, and on Saturday, the human rights cell of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) renewed this demand.
The PPP’s HR cell called for revisiting the former prime minister’s case on the eve of his 34th death anniversary, and demanded that the court classify Bhutto’s execution as a judicial murder.
Bhutto, the architect of the 1973 Constitution and the founder of the PPP, was sentenced to death after what is widely considered a flawed and unfair trial.
“The process of democratisation, the movement towards greater rights and freedoms cannot be complete unless this dark chapter of history is resolved, and it is now up to the courts to redress this historical wrong,” said the PPP’s Dr Nafisa Shah. “No matter how independent and fair the judiciary of Pakistan becomes, the Bhutto trial will forever scar it, unless the courts take it upon themselves to revisit the case, and to declare it a judicial murder,” she added.
In April 2011, President Asif Ali Zardari appealed to the Supreme Court – through a presidential reference under Article 186 of the Constitution – seeking the court’s opinion on revisiting Bhutto’s murder trial, as well as seeking a revision of the death sentence awarded to him. The court had stopped hearing the case after suspending the licence of Senator Babar Awan, the government’s former counsel in the case.
President Zardari has now appointed Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan as his new counsel in the case.
The court had also appointed 10 amicus curiae (Latin for ‘friend of the court’) on April 21. Some prominent lawyers, including SM Zafar and Aitzaz, were also among the 10 names, while others later disassociated themselves from the list.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 7th, 2013.
COMMENTS (2)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ
Absolute power corrupts: We have seen this time and again. Today we are seeing that Courts exercising unchecked powers like previously it happened during Zia times when Military was in power. SC should restrain itself from acting like a spoiled child there reaction is to what the corrupt has done to Pakistan over the last five years and there is no justification of this. SC should act with restraint and from here will rise the true leaders but not by reacting to some events. Despite the fact that it feels good.
ZAB was not hanged just by Zia but by the LHC and SC judges. How can they review their own decision and do the right thing for a change? From Justice Munir to Justice Mushtaq, to Nasim Shah to PCO judges, there has not been a military takeover that these judges did not endorse and aided and abetted in abrogation of constitution and high treason. Why change it now? Even today all the dictatorial dictates in the constitution are alive and thriving under the current setup.