The thin edge of the wedge

• And the quarreling politicians and judges

hile Nawaz Sharif resorts to hyperbole when he says Pakistan today is the ‘worst kind of dictatorship’, one would have readily agreed with him if he had said that there is a visible and continuous curtailment of democracy in the country. While the CJ maintains that the whole SC would resign if a Martial Law was imposed, the court prefers to look the other way as acts that curtail basic democratic rights take place. A media channel has been forced to go offline in several cities including areas of Lahore, newspapers receive tweets advising them not to publish statements or write-ups related to certain issues and political workers are picked up without warrants and released after humiliating questioning. This could very well be the beginning of the end of the system.

It is expected under the circumstances that judiciary would intervene to ensure that rights granted in the constitution are not taken away. Unfortunately there is no end to the unprecedented standoff between the PML-N leadership and SC. The CJ has warned the politicians over ‘anti-judiciary’ remarks and has hinted at increasing the punishment for contemners. There is a need on the part of the judiciary to avoid taking recourse to the contempt law too often. A display of restraint by the judges wielding power adds to their prestige and makes people regard them with awe. When judges speak too much instead of expressing themselves through their judgments, they are likely to be considered partial and subjected to criticism which may sometime turn out to be unfair. When they frequently turn up at the rostrums, this may lead them to say things that would make them a subject of controversy. .

The PML-N leadership and judiciary have to put the breaks on the ongoing confrontation. Both have to realise that democracy is the only system that suits the people of the country as well as the politicians and the judiciary. A continuation of unwise statements and invidious remarks can wreck the system which would be extremely harmful for the country.