BREAKING NEWS FROM PAKISTAN !!
16 December 2009
In what has been billed as a verdict that may change the course of Pakistan's political history, the Pakistani Supreme Court on Wednesday declared the controversial National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) as against the Constitution, thus putting the PPP parliamentarians and cabinet members and President Asif Zardari in a quandary.
The peak judicial body declared the controversial National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) as never to have existed and ordered the federal government to pursue money laundering cases pending in foreign countries, including Switzerland.
In a late-night short order that has no parallel in country’s judicial history, the 17-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry, ordered the federal government to take immediate steps to seek revival of the original requests or claims for mutual legal assistance to pursue money laundering cases pending in foreign countries, including Switzerland.
Since the verdict has not directly touched the immunity issue of the president, legal opinion remains divided on whether President Zardari can be prosecuted on the basis of corruption cases as they existed before the promulgation of NRO on Oct 5, 2007.
Similarly, fate of those who were convicted in absentia and are at present members of parliament or even in the cabinet also hangs in the balance and depends on the view and action of National Assembly Speaker Fehmida Mirza and Senate Chairman Farooq Naek.
As a consequence of the declaration, the judgment said, all cases in which the accused persons were either discharged or acquitted under Section 2 of NRO (amendment in Section 494 of the Criminal Procedure Code) or where proceedings pending against the holders of public office had been wound up in view of Section 7 shall revert to the pre-Oct 5, 2007, position.
A number of political leaders and members of MQM were direct beneficiaries of the NRO in thousands of criminal cases that the party has always dismissed as politically motivated, but now stand revived as a result of the verdict.
The court also ordered the federal government and other competent authorities to proceed against former attorney general Malik Mohammad Qayyum by declaring unauthorised, unconstitutional and illegal his acts of writing to various authorities/courts in foreign countries, including Switzerland.
As a consequence of the declaration, the judgment said, all cases in which the accused persons were either discharged or acquitted under Section 2 of NRO (amendment in Section 494 of the Criminal Procedure Code) or where proceedings pending against the holders of public office had been wound up in view of Section 7 shall revert to the pre-Oct 5, 2007, position.
All courts, including the trial, the appellate and the revision courts, were ordered to summon the persons accused in such cases and then to proceed from the stage from where proceedings were closed under the NRO.
The federal government, all provincial governments and all relevant and competent authorities, including NAB Prosecutor General Dr Danishwar, the special prosecutors in accountability courts, the prosecutors general in the four provinces and other officers or officials involved in the prosecution of criminal offenders, were also directed to offer every possible assistance required by the courts in this connection.
The court also ordered the federal government and other competent authorities to proceed against former attorney general Malik Mohammad Qayyum by declaring unauthorised, unconstitutional and illegal his acts of writing to various authorities/courts in foreign countries, including Switzerland.
The court noted that no order or any authority was established authorising the former AG to address unauthorised communications and thus the conduct of Malik Qayyum resulted in unlawful abandonment of claims of the government to huge amounts of the allegedly laundered money lying in foreign countries, including Switzerland.
The court also expressed its displeasure over the conduct and lack of proper and honest assistance and cooperation to the court by NAB Chairman Nawid Ahsan, the prosecutor general of the NAB and of Additional Prosecutor General Abdul Baseer Qureshi. It suggested the federal government to appoint competent, honest persons who fulfil the criteria outlined in Section 6 of the NAB Ordinance. The court asked the government to go through its observations in the Asfandyar Wali case. The verdict regretted that the conduct of NAB’s bosses made it impossible for the court to trust them.
Lawyers Applauded the Supreme Court's Decision
Lawyers have called the decision of Supreme Court on the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) a landmark judgment in the judicial history of Pakistan and the first step toward a corruption-free country.
Former Supreme Court Bar Association president Hamid Khan says the judgment is the outcome of lawyers’ movement which made the judiciary an independent institution. He said President Asif Ali Zardari should step down voluntarily to defend cases pending against him in courts if he held respect for the judiciary.
Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA) Secretary Muqtadir Akhter Shabbir said the court had proved that the doctrine of necessity had been buried forever and there were no privileged classes in the country before the law. He said lawyers were proud of the independent judiciary in the country and would continue to support its decisions.
By annulling the NRO, the Supreme Court has closed the door of corruption in the country for all time to come, said former LHCBA president Anwar Kamal. He demanded that all those holding public positions who took benefit from the ordinance should step down.
Former LHCBA secretary Rana Asadullah Khan said that it had been established that no one had immunity against prosecution.
In a statement, Amjad Malik of the UK Association of Pakistani Lawyers spoke highly of the Supreme Court decision declaring NRO ultra vires.
He said it was a state failure that no reliable mechanism of adjudicating corruption was ensured in the past. “Now we must acknowledge that our system promotes corruption in each class and cadre, and we must deter that activity by mutual political will,” he said.
He said Pakistan must install a mechanism of transparent accountability and all allegations and cases be presented to that body for a fair assessment and adjudication.
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