Daily Times

Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar Saturday said that all 17 judges of Supreme Court will step down if an attempt is made to attack judiciary or impose martial law in the country.

“I can assure you that myself and the 17 [other] justices of Supreme Court will not allow anything of the sort and will stand in the way of such a breach of the law,” the top judge told an event organised in connection with the death anniversary of Allama Iqbal, here at the Aiwan-i-Iqbal.

The chief justice also said the judges of the country cannot even comprehend the idea of a ‘judicial martial law’ as it does not exist in the constitution of Pakistan. “This could be someone’s heart’s desire, but people should not think that we are doing anything to usher in judicial martial law in the country,” he said. “There is no such thing in the constitution, and we will not do anything that is not by the book,” he said. “I am astonished when journalists and analysts raise a hue and cry about martial law. Nobody can dare something like this in Iqbal’s country, for which the Quaid-e-Azam only envisaged democracy,” he added.

Promising to always be a champion of democracy and the fundamental rights of the people, the chief justice vowed that the judiciary will never bow down to any pressure and will uphold the law and constitution of the country. “As father of this institution, I promise you that the judiciary of this country cannot be pressurised by anyone,” he said. “This country is a democratic state. Allama Iqbal and the Quaid-i-Azam dreamt of it as a democratic state, and so it shall remain,” he said. “We will fight for your rights until the day we feel that we no longer have your support, and that day we will gladly and willingly leave our office,” he said. “I promise this nation that I will do whatever is in my power for this country,” he added.

Lamenting that the vision of Pakistan had shattered, the top judge said had Quaid-e-Azam been alive today, the conditions of the country would have been significantly different. “How unlucky are those who don’t have a land of their own?” he questioned. “Nations with no countries of their own are unfortunate. We should thank Allah Almighty that we have a country to call our own, which Quaid-e-Azam and Allama Iqbal fought for us to get,” he said. “We did not get Pakistan as charity. We had to fight hard and sacrifice blood, sweat and tears to build this country. However, this country today is not being given its due importance,” he lamented.

Referring to he being dubbed as ‘Awami Chief Justice’, the top judge said he was not doing any of this for populism or approval but because it was his duty.

Admitting that the judicial system had not been up to the mark in the past, the chief justice said that while it was his responsibility, it was the failure of other systems that had resulted in so much pressure upon the courts that cases that are decades old are still being decided. “Why do you think the judicial process is so slow? It is because people are forced to go to court. Nobody wants to litigate without some solid reason,” he said.

Accepting responsibility as the chief justice for the judicial system, he urged different institutions to come together to correct the system. “A single trial judge has hundreds of cases that need to be handled daily and only a few hours to deal with them. Tell me are three minutes per case enough when we already have a slow public prosecution and defence system?” he questioned. “Has any work been done on alternative dispute resolution? Have we taken any steps to promote mediation? Contract law, acquisition law, and even some of our criminal laws are centuries old. How can it be expected that the judicial system will be efficient?” he asked.

The chief justice said that formulating laws is the responsibility of the legislature, adding that no laws in line with modern requirements have been added to the constitution. He said that the true essence of the ‘respect the vote’ slogan lies in serving the masses and providing them with basic rights. “The respect of vote that is being talked about will be achieved when the people are served,” he said, asking what is wrong with judiciary providing basic rights to the people.

Expressing displeasure over the state of education, the chief justice said, “Education is of prime importance to me. The world has Oxford University, and here we see 80 kanals of Punjab University land being handed over to the government for a grid station.”

The top judge then stated that the state of hospitals in KP and Punjab is unsatisfactory. “There are no ultrasound machines in hospitals … no female staff in KP for an ultrasound. The hospitals do not have CCU wards,” he added.

The top judge said that the judiciary will continue to fight for people’s rights, adding that the two most important elements of a progressive nation are leaders and education. “I am in contact with all institutions and courts and we are reviewing progress,” he added.

Published in Daily Times, April 22^nd 2018.