The top tier and second level leadership of PML-N waged a campaign directly against the JIT while some members obliquely insinuated towards Supreme Court as well, as happened in the case of Senator Nehal Hashmi who is currently being tried for contempt of court for the fierce, critical diatribe against JIT and judiciary he gave couple of weeks ago.
Since, the law related to contempt of court had been reduced to writing more than a decade back. Pakistan Today ventured out and sought opinion of lawmen on possible action by SC on various statements issued by PML-N leaders during the last two months.
It is pertinent to mention here that SC in order to make sure whether contempt of court was committed or not on last Monday had ordered that transcripts of all speeches made by Railway Minister Saad Rafique, MNA Talal Chaudhary and Special Advisor to PM Asif Kirmani during the JIT investigation, be submitted on next hearing.
Back in 2003, in order to regulate the exercise of the powers of courts to punish for contempt of court, an ordinance titled, ‘The Contempt of Court Ordinance, 2003’ was promulgated. In section 3 of the ordinance the definition of contempt of court was given as — ‘Whoever disobeys or disregards any order, direction or process of a court, which he is legally bound to obey; or commits a willful breach of a valid undertaking given to a court; or does anything which is intended to or tends to bring the authority of a court or the administration of law into disrespect or disrepute, or to interfere with or obstruct or interrupt or prejudice the process of law or the due course of any judicial proceedings, or to lower the authority of a court or scandalize a judge in relation to his office, or to disturb the order or decorum of a court is said to commit “contempt of court”, the contempt is of three types, namely; the “civil contempt” “criminal contempt” and “judicial contempt“.
Former SCBA President Barrister Ali Zafar while talking to Pakistan Today said that the press conference by four ministers a day before submission of final JIT report had certainly attacked the JIT directly, while partially and obliquely challenged whatever decision the Supreme Court will make.
‘Some part and some portion and statements from these press conferences indeed can be tantamount to contempt of court,’ he said adding that some references and inferences certainly felt as if they were planned to defy the court.
However, Ali ruled out any contempt action as he believed Supreme Court of Pakistan had long realised that it was a political case and the court fully comprehends the mechanics of electoral politics and nuances.
‘Normally the courts show a lot more restraint in contempt cases. As the conventions tell us that the people go in there when summoned and tender their unconditional apologies and court accepts them,’ said Badar Iqbal Chaudhry advocate. Iqbal was of the view that since the courts know that they have to balance out justice, thus in light of their apology the court gives them reprieve.
‘However, there is a very brutal exception as well. It is of Babar Awan advocate, whose membership of Supreme Court was suspended for two years in 2012 by then Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, although he tendered his apology still he only managed to get his license back in 2014,’ he said.