Photo courtesy National Assembly of Pakistan
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Wednesday claimed that recent judgments of the Supreme Court are akin to “contempt” of Parliament and urged Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf to refer the matter to the privileges committee.
Referring in particular to the apex court directing the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to release funds for polls in Punjab and secure ex-post facto approval from Parliament, he said this amounted to “disobeying” lawmakers, who had already denied the release of funds for elections. The minister, who is also the chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party, stressed in the National Assembly that Parliament’s decisions could not be ignored. “If the Parliament allows releasing of funds, we have no objection,” he said.
Emphasizing that the executive was bound to follow the decisions of Parliament, he said it was against the basic principle of democracy and the Constitution to do otherwise. “Parliament has the authority to decide how public money can be spent and where it is spent,” he said, describing as “unfortunate” that some elements were committing contempt of Parliament.
Maintaining that no one could be allowed to breach Parliament’s privilege, he urged the speaker to refer the matter of the “offensive” order from the Supreme Court to the privileges committee. “Insulting the prime minister is an insult to all members of the National Assembly. No institution will be allowed to disrespect of the country’s prime minister,” he said, referring to remarks by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial and Justice Munib Akhtar in which they had questioned how people who were in jail a few months back were now giving speeches in Parliament and warned of “consequences” if the funds for elections were not released.
Noting that the House supporting the “majority decision” of four judges—who had issued orders stating the suo motu on the elections delay was inadmissible—he said all major political parties were united in wanting general elections nationwide on the same day. He urged the judiciary to remain within its limits and allow Parliament to function without any interference. “The Supreme Court wants to impose a minority decision by turning it into a majority one. We will not accept it under any circumstances,” he added.
Recalling that the court had not shown the same zeal for adherence to the Constitution when the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led government had refused to conduct local government polls in Punjab despite court orders, he stressed that the PPP would never violate the Constitution, as its sole objective was to unite the federating units and safeguard the rights of people. The Constitution, he said, guaranteed the supremacy of Parliament and ensured the respect of all institutions. He said it appeared “fishy” that court was only concerned with polls in Punjab and had not ordered any elections in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. He reiterated that the government believed elections should be held nationwide simultaneously.
Reiterating that all political dialogue must be conducted within Parliament, rather than courtrooms, he said if all political parties engaged in a dialogue, it would not only preserve democracy and the federation, but also uphold the institutions’ honor and dignity.