Legal experts believe that following the rejection of his appeal by the eight-member Supreme Court bench in the contempt case, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani is left with only one option: submitting himself to the mercy of the court and writing the letter to the Swiss authorities – a choice President Asif Ali Zardari and the prime minister have time and again rubbished saying they would not comply with the court orders, come what may.
Legal expert Babar Sattar told Pakistan Today that Gilani might apologise and rectify his previous mistake by writing the letter. Asked whether the prime minister could take any legal plea to avoid his conviction, Sattar said there was no such option left to him now.
“If he still does not submit to the court, his conviction is now written on the wall. But if convicted under contempt charges, Gilani may file an intra-court appeal. Even after the appeal, he has another option to file a review petition,” he added. Asked if there were any lacunae in the appeal submitted by Aitzaz Ahsen, Gilani’s counsel, Sattar said the appeal was detailed and had covered all options.
He said Ahsen did not take the plea of immunity to the president under Article 248, which was a double-edged sword. “They knew that this option may backfire because if the court interpreted the Article 248 holding that there was no immunity to the president, the cases against the president in Pakistan would have also been opened aside from the Swiss cases,” he added.
He said even if the prime minister filed a review petition, the same grounds would be adopted that were adopted in the appeal. “I think the 17-member bench order on the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) was very clear and no plea can be taken against it,” he said, adding that the prime minister’s case was undependable and even the government knew that well.
“Actually, neither the seven-member bench nor the eight-member bench could overrule the ruling given by the 17-member bench,” he said and added that the government’s strategy was just to drag on the court’s verdict to buy more and more time. He said the government had not appointed a career bureaucrat as law secretary as bureaucrats did not defy the court. “The government knows that even if the law secretary or the prime minister has to be sacrificed, it would not hesitate. It would serve their purpose politically as well,” he added.
Justice (r) Wajihuddin Ahmed said the prime minister would now have to appear in court on February 13 and the court would indict him. He said if the prime minister failed to appear in the court, he might face horrendous consequences. “He might be declared an absconder,” he said.
“If Gilani is convicted in the contempt case, he would be disqualified under Article 63(1)(g) of the constitution immediately as a member of the National Assembly,” he said, adding that there would be no need for the National Assembly speaker to send a reference to the chief election commissioner. Rather, he added, the court order would be enough for the disqualification of the prime minister.
pehly bhi ek hi option tha
Don’t write letter & Drag SC till 31st of march even u have to scarifies yourtself Gillani then there will be no NRO black mailing of judiciary & establishment for PPP & this NRO chapter will be close forever.
This man must be punished.
Why the hell does supreme court and its lord the CJ iftikhatr do not take some actions against Altaf the bhai and ex-president Mush the don who had literally pulled his hair .. . the reason being that even supreme court does not give justice neither it can.
i hope he get a strong verdict and he gets time for it.
there is a second option …… goto jail
@Laeeq Hashmi: Billions of Dollar (National assets) were theft by 8,000 dacoits and you’re advising to close NRO….
if the cases are fake, why not these people go for the trial and get clearence from the court ??
Disgusting tactics by the so called elected leader of the highest law making body, shows their moral caliber of these dacoits and frauds.
What is it that stops PM Gilani from writting THE LETTER? Is it the content or is it content of the supposed reply? After all legal loops have been exhausted the world,s attention is focused on one loyal servant of the president.Loyality has limits.The sooner he sees that chickens have come to roost the easier will he feel. Set a example for others to follow. It takes a brave man to say sorry.
Whatever, Gilani has qualified all tests to claim a Real Hard JIYALA. His loyality to the party, its leadership and decisions has no match in the recent history. He might personally dislike some of the steps, but has sticked to it as a matter of principal, unlike Farooq Laghari – who has become a symbol of betrayland mis-trust. If SC is taking this case as an unusually test case, then we should be ready to see equal match from the other side. In case of conviction, Part of PM House will be declared a sub-jail and Gilani will run the country from within the jail.
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