KARACHI – The Sindh Assembly on Friday passed a unanimous resolution, expressing displeasure at National Assembly opposition leader Chaudhry Nisar, who had filed a petition against Justice (retd) Deedar Hussain Shah’s appointment as the chairman of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
The resolution stated that Nisar’s double standards and biased attitude could harm provincial harmony and pose a threat to democracy. The house appreciated the role of Shah, who had served as Sindh High Court (SHC) chief justice, and as a judge of the Supreme Court. Following the tabling of the resolution by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)’s Sharjeel Inam Memon and Rafiq Engineer, all PPP provincial lawmakers stood up and jointly presented the resolution; however, the members of the opposition remained in their seats, but did not oppose the resolution.
In his ruling, Speaker Nisar Ahmed Khuhro said that the resolution had been passed unanimously. Memon and Engr said that those who were involved in the attack on the judiciary had now become the blue-eyed men of the judiciary. After passing the resolution, Home Minister Zulfiqar Ali Mirza quoted a newspaper and said that Punjabi judges had removed a Sindhi judge. He demanded the Supreme Court to take notice of the article, according to which judges were divided along ethnic lines.
Earlier, Memon said that March 10, 2011 would be a day that could not be easily forgotten because of Supreme Court’s decision to remove the NAB chairman. He said that Nisar’s petition was prejudiced and narrow-minded because Nisar does not want a Sindhi or anyone from Sindh to head NAB. “Every institution should work within its boundaries. President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani have the power to appoint the NAB chairman, and the PML-N was consulted in this regard.”
He also said, “People have started asking questions. Why was Sindh’s Zulfikar Ali Bhutto hanged, but Punjab’s Nawaz Sharif reprieved even after his conviction? Why was the toppled government of Sindh’s Benazir Bhutto not restored, but the government of Punjab’s Sharif – which was removed on the same grounds – restored by the judiciary?”
Engr said that Naseem Hassan Shah had admitted that Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was convicted because the judiciary was immensely pressured. The current chief justice of Pakistan had sworn his oath under the Provisional Constitution Order, he said. If there is chauvinism and fascism in the courts, people have the right to protest it, he added. After the assembly’s session, members of the house wore black armbands and marched from the Sindh Assembly building to the SHC to protest Supreme Court’s decision.
After gathering in front of the SHC, they held a sit-in, during which the MPAs chanted slogans against Nisar and others.
