NAB and Supreme Court Pakistan

The tussle between Pakistan’s federal government and Supreme Court is a kind of saga which refuses to vanish. The recent maneuvers highlight this assertion.

The foremost is the government’s attempt to take over judiciary by reappointing the former National Accountability Bureau head Deedar Hussain Shah. The Supreme Court in contrast previously rejected the government’s petition to reinstate Deedar Hussain as the head.

In addition, National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has been functioning even after Supreme Court declared that anti-corruption body was to cease to exist. Therefore, this marks a significant cause of tussle between Supreme Court and the government.

Another instance of the tussle is evident from the Supreme Court’s efforts to look into cases of corruption of the government which unfortunately are deeply embedded in PPP’s government.

PPP’s government however seems to be determined in defiance of the court’s orders. It is stated by PPP’s circles that their government is being harassed by an unfriendly court which indulges in conspiracies against it.

Pakistani Government against Supreme Court pakistan

With regard to these two instances, experts’ analysis states that the judiciary-executive tussle is never ending with a new crisis brewing up soon after the last one is resolved. The starting point of the tussle can be traced down to 2008 when Pakistan People’s Party reneged on its promise to restore the judiciary deposed by former President Pervez Musharraf.

This matter was intensified with the government taking on the judiciary on National Reconciliation Order (NRO).This demonstrates that the government is not willing to budge an inch on matters it wants to get done!

More than this the strained relationship between the Supreme Court and the PPP’s government has a historic background. This can be elaborated by explaining the time when the judiciary hanged a great visionary leader, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto in subservience to the President’s Zia ul Haq’s orders.

Zardari and  Supreme Court Pakistan

Furthermore, PPP holds a long list of complaints against the judiciary which incorporates the injustice extended to Shaheed Benzair Bhutto, character assassinations of BB and party leadership, cases against Asif Ali Zardari and Begum Nusrat Bhutto.

The impact of the tussle between the government and the Supreme Court has resulted in deep and pervasive problems in governance.

Corruption is the most common one. Collateral damage to the bureaucracy is being extended which is further eroding the already poor governance since bureaucrats are being tugged in opposite directions.

Moreover, the judiciary power is not duly recognized by the government resulting in lack of complete provision of justice to all the citizens in particular the victims.

This marks a very gloomy situation of Pakistan’s government and the judiciary. It calls for a dire need to improve the scenario. Concrete measures are required to be adopted to eliminate the strained relation between the judiciary and the government.

Open negotiation channels needs to be used up to ameliorate the crisis that brews up frequently between the government and the judiciary. For citizens’ well-being, for attainment of a sound, stable, just and equitable society such steps are urgently required to be implemented.