At no time in the country’s history was judiciary presented such an opportunity to regain its prestige that it has lost over decades by decisions that favoured usurpers and by generally siding with a predatory ruling elite. The verdicts that legitimised military rulers not only derailed democracy but also led to the reduction of the courts’ own authority. Both civil and military rulers subsequently took actions to further turn the judiciary into a handmaiden. Civilian rulers packed courts, appointed confidants to key positions and sidelined independent judges. Two military rulers required judges to take fresh oath under PCO to get rid of those considered meddlesome or unreliable. Read the rest of this entry »

The People’s Democracy Institute of the Shaheed Bhutto Foundation filed a constitutional petition on Wednesday in the Supreme Court saying that the public announcement by General Pervez Musharraf on June 9 to withdraw the June 4 amendments to the PEMRA Ordinance had still not been implemented and it was a mere a public relations exercise aimed at buying time and not an honest declaration of intent. “The June 4 amendments that still held the field be declared unconstitutional,” it said.
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