Daily Times

The Supreme Court’s detailed judgement explaining its decision on former national assembly deputy speaker Qasim Suri’s controversial actions on 3 April 2022 did not really spring any surprises. It was pretty clear from the short order that the top court considered the then ruling party’s actions as extra-constitutional, something it described in the final judgment as “jurisdictional excess”. It also made it very clear that the legislature is not really immune from judicial scrutiny if the house itself violates the constitution. Yet the reaction of leading political parties was also quite predictable.

PML-N’s experiencing its moment in the sun, of course, and even mulling initiating treason proceedings under Article-6 of the constitution against the PTI leadership. Imran Khan and his merry men, on the other hand, have rejected the detailed judgement as well and promised to have it quashed in the house when they return there with two-thirds majority; whenever that will be. So, rather than settle the matter, this decision has set the stage for yet another round of confrontation, this one more bitter than previous ones.

Regrettably, PTI’s also decided to shift gears in terms of taking its fight to the country’s premier institutions. Thinly veiled shots at the military and judiciary have now turned into a full-scale frontal assault, launched at a formal press conference, no less. Now campaigning, even in its last hours at the time of writing, has been reduced to PTI and PML-N spewing venom at each other on the one hand, and PTI ridiculing institutions, including the election commission, on the other. And from the looks of things so far, it’s very clear that whichever party comes out the loser will dispute the result and then we’ll have yet more topics in this ugly, fast degenerating mud fight among our political elite.

When even the verdict of the highest court in the land cannot restore sanity, and even “jurisdictional excess” is claimed by one party as its inalienable right, then there are sure to be very problematic times ahead for such parties and all institutions involved. Things are going from bad to worse for the country and its people just because their political representatives cannot stand each other. *