Responding to the Supreme Court decision to indict Prime Minister (PM) Yousaf Raza Gilani on contempt of court changes for refusing to pursue corruption cases against President Asif Ali Zardari, legal experts on Thursday said the decision by the apex court was correct under law but that the PM had options open to avoid conviction.
The SC has summoned Gilani on February 13 to frame charges against him. Talking to Pakistan Today, Justice (r) Wajihuddin Ahmed said, “Following the seven-member bench order, the prime minister may opt to file an intra-court appeal the ten judges who are not part of the sitting bench. If he gets a stay order against the seven-member bench decision, the matter will be closed. But if his appeal is rejected, he will have to appear before the court on February 13.”
He said after the SC frames charges against Gilani, his fate will rest on court orders which will decide his future. “If PM Gilani is disqualified under Article 63(1) (g) of the Constitution, he will immediately be disqualified as member of national assembly. In this case, there will be no need to write to the National Assembly Speaker or chief election commissioner, and the court order will be enough to disqualify him. He said that if the PM fails to appear before the court on the set date, he faced a worse fate. “In case he fails to appear before the court, the court may declare him an absconder,” he added.
Another retired judge, Fakharuddin G Ebrahim, said there was no doubt that the PM had refused to implement court orders which constituted contempt. He said, “The law is equal for all whether it is prime minister or a lay man. Even the country’s chief executive should respect court orders.” He said the court had exercised restraint and had been reasonable. He said it had even gone out of the way to accommodate Gilani. “The decision was according to legal norms and the constitution,” he asserted.
Asked what options were left with Gilani, Ebrahim said that the PM can inform the court that he was unable to implement the order due to personal constraints. “He may also submit unconditional apology and state that he will write the letter to Swiss authorities in accordance with court orders,” he said, “alternately, he may also submit an appeal to a larger bench against the seven-member bench order.”
However, he agreed with Aitzaz Ahsan that even if Gilani was convicted, he will not be automatically disqualified. “Set down procedure will have to be followed if Gilani is convicted. If so, the national assembly speaker will have to send a reference to the chief election commissioner that Gilani stands disqualified after being convicted by the court. The election commission will then disqualify him which means he will also have to relinquish the office of prime minister.”
Tariq Mehmood said the PM’s fate will be decided by the court itself. “Let’s see what charges are framed against Gilani. If the court takes the views that the PM disobeyed the court, he might be able to remain in office. But if the court says that Gilani had ridiculed the court, he may have to relinquish his office after being disqualified.” Asked what options were left with Gilani, Mehmood said that he may file an appeal against the court order. “Otherwise, he might have to seek mercy from the court,” he concluded.
Gilani Sahib, khat likh dein.
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