"Forming a constitutional court does not Attack judicial independence" Expert Analysis

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#ConstitutionalAmendment  #PMLNGovt #PMShehbazSharif#FazalUrRehman #ImranKhan #AsifZardari #QaziFaezIsa #AsimMunir #NationalAssembly   "Forming a constitutional court does not Attack judicial independence" Expert Analysis

Transcript

00:00On one hand, there is a political and on the other hand, there is a legal issue.

00:04Lawyers are present in the court.

00:07Today, another interesting situation developed.

00:11A minister of law, Mr. Tarar, said that he will hold an important press conference.

00:16He will talk about the case.

00:18Later, it was found out that he will meet the Bar Associations.

00:21He will share all his points there.

00:24The situation is that the Supreme Court Bar Association has issued a notice

00:28to the Bar Councils and Bar Associations.

00:33The committee has been formed.

00:37The committee will bring its report in 7 days.

00:42Not just that, the committee will include the vice chairmen of the Bar Councils and the chairmen of the executive committee.

00:47The committee will include the president and the general secretary of the Supreme Court Bar Association.

00:52Not just that, the bar council's vice chairmen and the chairmen of the executive committee.

00:56So this is the constitution of the committee, which is now made by the advocate.

01:00The advocate is saying, ask us too.

01:02It's not like you can make all the amendments yourself and no one will ask us.

01:06Hamid Khan has given a very strict and stern statement.

01:10He has been giving such statements since day one.

01:12But listen to what he said.

01:15There is illegitimacy in bringing the amendments.

01:18This government, which is the government of Form 47,

01:21Pakistan's Federal Constitutional Court is only and only the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

01:27Without this, no Federal Constitutional Court can be formed.

01:31Forget this, they will never let this happen.

01:34After the appointment of every Chief Justice,

01:36the Supreme Court's senior judge will only be the Chief Justice.

01:40There will not be a panel of five.

01:44To discuss this issue, we have two lawyers with us.

01:47Mr. Yaya Fareed and Mr. Ahmed Bansota are with us.

01:52Mr. Yaya, let's start with you.

01:55It's very clear, Mr. Hamid, that

01:58being the Supreme Court, being the Chief Justice of Pakistan,

02:02there is no question of forming a new Constitutional Court.

02:05Will the Constitutional Court not allow the formation of a new Constitutional Court?

02:09Because all the political parties are on the Constitutional Court,

02:12especially the United Nations, the government and Mr. Maulana.

02:14Mr. Murtaza Wahab was telling us that they are also ready to sit on this.

02:18Look, Constitutional Courts are not the first case in Pakistan.

02:21There are Constitutional Courts in 77 countries in the world.

02:24And let's take the example of Pakistan.

02:26It is in countries like France and Germany.

02:30So, making a Constitutional Court is not an attack on the independence of judiciary.

02:34First of all, you can say that this is a political failure of the coalition government.

02:40The way this bill was tabled

02:42or the way it was not consulted with the opposition.

02:45This is a political failure.

02:47But to say that all these 43 amendments are an attack on the independence of judiciary.

02:53I think this is a crime.

02:55We saw a legal awakening in the 20-year hard work of the lawyers' movement.

02:59The lawyers' movement was not for the benefit of Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.

03:03It was for the independence of judiciary.

03:05But it was important for him that judicial reforms were brought.

03:10I don't understand why our people, lawyers, politicians, and journalists

03:18get nervous when it comes to judicial reforms from the parliament.

03:22You take the example of Pakistan.

03:24You take the example of Mexico.

03:26There was a big problem in Mexico.

03:28Drug cartels influenced the appointment of judges.

03:31Mexico amended its law.

03:33Six and a half thousand judges were directly...

03:35No, Mr. Ilyas.

03:36No one has a problem with amending the law.

03:39That is justified.

03:40But the problem is with the method.

03:42Because the foreign officials are asking us to join them.

03:45Take suggestions from us.

03:47Take advice from us.

03:48As far as the method is concerned, there were only two methods.

03:51The government would have approved it from the federal cabinet.

03:54It would have taken it to the parliament with a two-thirds majority.

03:56If it had been voted, it would have been approved.

03:59Yes, there should have been a consultation.

04:00There is no doubt that the coalition should have had a consultation.

04:03But that is a political failure.

04:05But the way these 43 amendments have been put in cold storage.

04:09Saying that maybe we don't need these amendments.

04:12I think this is a reaction from Vukla and the lawmakers.

04:17So this is a wrong reaction.

04:19Because making a federal constitutional court is not a crime.

04:24In fact, the burden of the 60,000 cases pending in the Supreme Court of Pakistan will be reduced.

04:29And modern jurisprudence has now become a part of it.

04:32That you have to make specialized courts.

04:34If you can make specialized courts in lower courts.

04:37Like banking courts and terrorism courts.

04:39Then why can't you make a body of a constitutional expert on a higher forum?

04:43Which is the composition of the judges of the Supreme Court, the judges of the High Court and the senior Vukla of the Supreme Court.

04:49So very soon, I think, only with the procedure.

04:52It is being said that this is an attack on the independence of judiciary.

04:56I will come back to you, Yahya.

04:59Ahmed, I would bring the question to you from Mr. Hamid Khan.

05:04Firstly, Vukla will not let this happen.

05:07Is this the perspective of Mr. Hamid Khan or the perspective of Vukla?

05:11Because here, the committee that has been formed.

05:14It has also been said in the announcement that apart from the Vukla representative organizations.

05:18No one is allowed to call for a strike.

05:24First of all, the view of Mr. Hamid Khan.

05:27A majority of the Vukla of Pakistan subscribes to it.

05:31That view is not an ill-founded view.

05:33Now, as far as it is a matter of whether the amendment can be made in the constitution or not.

05:37Of course, no one disputes this.

05:40It is the right of the parliament to amend the constitution.

05:42But I want to ask two or three questions.

05:45When you bring the amendment of the constitution.

05:47And the amendment of the constitution is such a situation-specific or person-specific.

05:51The Charter of Democracy was mentioned today.

05:53All these reforms were mentioned in just two or three months.

05:56Three months ago, you notified the Qazi.

05:59Today, you are unable to notify the Chief Justice.

06:01All these amendments that you are bringing.

06:04These amendments, in my opinion.

06:06If you read the case of the Rawalpindi Bar Association.

06:08In that, a salient feature has been declared to the Independence of Judiciary.

06:11This is intended to impinge the Independence of Judiciary.

06:14Because you are making a court.

06:16You are also making a federal court.

06:17And the way you are giving it jurisdiction.

06:19With that jurisdiction, you are making the Supreme Court redundant.

06:22If the pendency of cases was a problem.

06:24Then the pendency of cases would have been resolved in the whole world.

06:27Let me put another perspective in front of you.

06:29Which is the perspective of the government.

06:30Because there is no representative of the government.

06:32They say that one is the case of the people.

06:36And the other is the case of Khawas.

06:38The case of Khawas takes up 90% of the time of the Supreme Court.

06:41So the people remain trapped.

06:43There is a murder case in jail.

06:45And after that, there is a bail.

06:47And it is found that the person had died in jail.

06:49So the cases of the people should be heard by the Supreme Court.

06:53The cases of Khawas, which also have media airtime.

06:56Those courts should be made.

06:59Which will be new courts.

07:00Which will be legal courts.

07:01Look, Lahore High Court and other high courts also have constitutional jurisdiction.

07:05And along with that, there is also civil criminal jurisdiction.

07:07You did not create a special court there.

07:10Specialized benches and murder references are also heard there.

07:13Your civil appeals are also heard.

07:15And they decide it very quickly.

07:17If there is a Shariat Appellate Bench in the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

07:21If there is a Cooperative Bench.

07:23Then you nominate a constitutional bench of the top three judges.

07:26And give them work.

07:27That you will end all constitutional cases in the next three months.

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