Despite continued provocative advice by some of the top government advisers, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani has been able to keep his composure and his body language, conduct and restraint has been able to keep the system going despite the fact that he was provoked, taunted and tempted to go head-on against the judiciary in the last seven days.
A source told Pakistan Today that despite the fact that Prime Minister Gilani was ridiculed by a legislator from the Awami National Party (ANP) during a meeting held at the Presidency, he kept his composure and did not react. “This comment might have changed the strategy as Babar Awan also supported these views and said that the prime minister should have summoned Establishment Secretary Sohail Ahmed and snubbed him for bypassing his authority. However, it was PML-Q (Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid) President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain who came to the rescue of Gilani and said the matter should be dealt with restraint and tacit messaging that the executive and judiciary should not cross their respective ambits,” the source said.
Another source told Pakistan Today that during the recent cabinet meeting, while briefing the cabinet on the legal issues, Awan had said that there was an urgent need for the executive to send a strong message to the judiciary to remain within its limits. “Awan said governance was very different from running the affairs of ‘peeran da dera’, where every visitor was welcomed and no one was given a shut-up call. The prime minister should tell the judiciary that enough is enough,” said the source, adding that the prime minister immediately intervened and said it was inappropriate to say so.
Forthwith, the prime minister also asked Awan to end his briefing, the source said, adding that Gilani said the government should take a middle ground rather than adopting a harsh stance against the judiciary. The source said Senior Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi also supported the view expressed by the premier and said confrontation was not a wise step, and such a stance might take the country towards instability and anarchy.
“However, Elahi opined that the cabinet should send an implicit message that the executive and judiciary should function within their prescribed domains,” the source said. “Mr Prime Minister, you should also go and attend a dinner hosted tonight in honour of the retiring judge Justice Javed Iqbal. This would help defuse the situation and also it would remove mistrust between the government and judiciary,” the source quoted Wattoo as saying.
But, the source said, the prime minister rejected the proposal and told the cabinet members that the situation was far from what it was in the past. The source said the body language of the chief executive was positive and he was ready to cooperate with the judiciary.
