After the attack on an SHC judge, is the judiciary safe?
Imagine the scene: a heavily guarded convoy of a Sindh High Court judge is passing through the crowded Burns Road in Karachi when a bomb goes off. Seven policemen, one Ranger and the driver die. The judge, Maqbool Baqar, himself receives serious injuries and is shifted to a private hospital for treatment, in hope of saving his life. The message has been delivered by the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) through its spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan. Honourable Judge Baqir had served on the anti-terrorism court and Ehsan said he was a target for “anti-Taliban and anti-mujahideen decisions.” He also made the purpose of the attack quite obvious. It was to deliver the message that the judiciary would continue to be targeted for its “anti-Islamic and injudicious decisions.”
The judiciary has been a long-standing target for Islamists and terrorists. Anti-terrorism court judges have been claiming for a long time that they have to let militants off because either they are threatened, or the witnesses are gunned down in the course of the trial. With the TTP now declaring the judiciary a ‘direct target’ and almost getting it a high court judge in the harrowing attack in Karachi on Wednesday, it is a time for the government to take stock of its priorities. The strike called by lawyers should be an indicator but it is not expected to do enough. Baqir was reported to have been on the hit list of the proscribed militant organisation Lashkar-i-Jhangvi (LeJ), an organisation linked to the TTP, as well. No concerted effort has apparently been undertaken to dismantle it and the situation is getting out of control every day.
While some of the blame must be put on the Sindh chief minister, in power for the second time, and doing nothing concrete about the continued terrorist attacks and targeted killings, much of the responsibility remains with the federal government and security agencies. This is now the second decade of the TTP-led insurgency and no concrete line has been taken on the organization yet. The attack on Judge Baqir, known to be an honest judge, who had partaken in some key terrorism hearings, should be the last straw. Can the TTP and other militant organizations be allowed to hold the judiciary hostage? The Sindh government must take stock and consider bringing in the Rangers to wrest control of the situation. The CM should also leave aside his ego and consider seeking the help of the federal government. The Nawaz Sharif-led federal government must now begin to ponder regarding the new dimension added to the countrywide spate of terrorism: judges who prosecute terrorists will now be attacked. How can the judicial system be let remain hostage to terrorists? The federal government, provincial governments and the security agencies must reach the same page – and fast.