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Sunday, September 15, 2013
Superior judiciary emerges as saviour of Constitution: CJPPESHAWAR: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on Saturday eulogised the role of justice and rule of law for sustainability of society, and said foundation of a civilised society is based on the rule of law.
Addressing members of the high court bar, district bar and other bar associations of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the CJP said that a society could neither flourish nor develop and sustain without rule of law. “The essential characteristics of the rule of law are supremacy of law; equality before the law; enforcement of legal rights; restriction on use of arbitrary powers and provision of civil liberties,” he said and added that “it can only be achieved through an impartial and independent judiciary”.
Quoting Greek philosopher Plato, the chief justice said, “Where the law is subject to some other authority and has none of its own, the collapse of the state, is not far off; but if law is the master of the government and the government is its slave, then the situation is full of promises and men enjoy all the blessings that the Gods shower on a state.” The constitution of Pakistan, he said, aims at creating an atmosphere of collaboration and harmony among all the state institutions in order to ensure delivery of justice to all. The role of judiciary is of prime importance in the system of administration of justice whereas the executive and the legislature have to render auxiliary contribution, he said.
However, to keep a check on the organs of the state and for the protection of the fundaments rights of the citizens, the judiciary has been specifically invested with the power of judicial review, Justice Chaudhry said. “In the recent years, the judiciary in discharge of its constitutional obligations has successfully emerged as a true saviour of constitutional supremacy and fundamental rights.”
He said the judiciary has always tried to create a balance between judicial activism and the judicial restraint. The chief justice said efforts made by the superior judiciary have ameliorated the condition of those who suffered grievances and enhanced public trust and confidence in the judicial institutions.
Bar associations, he added, play a vital role in ensuring the independence of judiciary, rule of law and supremacy of the constitution in the country.
He said the country’s legal history reveals that struggle of lawyers for the rule of law and independence of judiciary had been supported by the bars. He said lawyers have always been in the forefront of all the struggles – social or political.
“Since 1953 till 3rd November 2007 time and again, the constitution has been abrogated in the name of martial law or proclamation of emergency.”
According to the CJP, by issuing restraint order against the unconstitutional actions of a dictator on November 3, 2007, the judiciary ensured the enforcement of the constitution and rule of law.
He said there were greater challenges ahead and the biggest of them was to address the sufferings of litigants and improve the system of dispensation of justice. The CJP said that the national judicial policy has been formulated as result of the cooperation between the bench and bar and all stakeholders were given opportunity to fully participate in the process. The national judicial policy, he said, mainly focussed on eradication of corruption, independence of judiciary and reduction of backlog of cases. app
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk