News
Friday, July 06, 2012
Govt trying to weaken judiciary, says Imran Khan* PTI leader says changes to contempt law will sabotage rule of law
Staff Report
LAHORE: While expressing concern over the government’s recent move to change the contempt of court law, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan said the attempt was aimed at weakening the judiciary.
In a meeting on Thursday, Khan said the new legislation pertaining to contempt of court law would sabotage the rule of the law by weakening the judiciary. He said the primary focus of the rulers was to avoid accountability of their misdeeds, adding that the government was taking a number of steps to achieve that objective. No effective accountability law was allowed to be passed in parliament, a sustained campaign was initiated to undermine the National Accountability Bureau by appointing handpicked nominees in the organisation, he said while accusing the government of being involved in corruption and making efforts to avoid accountability.
He said the only institution standing in front of the tactics of the government was the judiciary, particularly the Supreme Court, adding that courts had over the last four years consistently checked corrupt practices of the ruling party. The most important decision that the judiciary had taken during the rule of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) was declaring the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) illegal, he added.
The nation knew, said Khan, the NRO decision was not implemented because the prime minister was mandated by his superiors and the party to protect the corruption done by their leader. This led to his conviction under the contempt of court law, unseating him as a member of parliament and as a consequence he had to leave the prime minister’s office, he said. The lesson that the ruling party learned from this, according to the PTI chairman, was to weaken the judiciary by mangling and making ineffective the contempt of court law.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk