Judiciary supports democratic system, says chief justice

Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on Tuesday said the judiciary supported the democratic system in the country and directed the Balochistan Government to ensure proper representation of people in the forthcoming general elections.
A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad
Chaudhry, Justice Gulzar Ahmed and Justice Azmat Saeed resumed hearing of a constitutional petition moved by the Balochistan High Court Bar Association regarding law and order situation in the province.
During the proceedings, the CJ appreciated the improvement in law and order in Balochistan, adding that at the same time “Democratic system should not be derailed at any cost”. Shahid Hamid, counsel for the Government of Balochistan apprised the court that the situation was improving in the province and efforts were underway to improve it further.
He said that around 400 mutilated bodies had been found in the province so far, adding that the situation had improved and during January 15 to January 27, no such case had been reported.
He admitted that during the mentioned period, about 28 people lost their lives in different incidents, yet no case of mutilated bodies, targeted killings or missing persons was reported.
The CJ said that the court is only concerned with the safety of the citizens under Article 9 of the constitution which should not be ignored at any cost.
The counsel said that the rehabilitation of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) was also underway. City Police Officer Zubair Ahmed informed the court that there had been some progress on the recovery of missing persons.
Balochistan Chief Secretary Babar Yaqoob Fateh said posting and transfers in the province are now being made purely on merit, adding that all departments have been asked to provide details of their staff.
He further stated that 427 cases of missing persons have been dispatched to the concerned departments for investigations. The bench adjourned hearing of the case till February 15.