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| Sword of Damocles hanging on "man of peace" after court conviction of Gilani | | | Early Times Report
Jammu, Apr 26: The man of peace, as Pakistan Prime Minister, Yousuf Raza Gilani, was called by the Indian Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, is safe but not yet free from the sword of Damocles hanging on his head. In fact the cloud of uncertainty hanging over Gilani's head, following his conviction by the Supreme Court today, has increased the level of political instability in Pakistan.
Reports reaching here from across the border have revealed that the Supreme Court of Pakistan convicted Gilani for contempt of court for refusing to revive graft cases against President Asif Ali Zardari. Gilani while refusing to re-open the graft cases had took shelter under the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) which had been issued by the former President Pervez Musharraf. Under the NRO, President enjoyed immunity against court proceedings and verdicts.
Though Gilani was convicted "till the rising of the Court" by the seven-Judge bench headed by Justice Nasir-ul-Malik, it has not insulated Gilani against any risk of losing power despite the fact that the sentence lasted for less than 30 seconds.
The Chief of PML(N) Nawaz Sharief, has already demanded that Gilani should resign after having been convicted by the Court.
But for the PPP led Government in Islamabad there were still several options to delay the resignation of Gilani. Political and legal experts are of the opinion that the Government has the option of filing a review petition.
Though the sentence only lasted for 30 seconds, however, what remains to be looked into is the aftermath of the sentence rather than its duration. Senator (R) Iqbal Haider said, "The fact remains that the PM has been found guilty of contempt of court and was sentenced under Article 63 (1) (g) of the Constitution of Pakistan. His sentence, no matter how short it was, has serious repercussions. The Prime Minister has been labelled as a convict." "Gilani will certainly file an appeal and will remain in his position till the final appeal is dismissed. At the same time, it is very important to understand that the dismissed appeal can also be filed for further review, providing the Government with more time to drag the case," experts say. According to these experts, if the review is also dismissed by the court, the matter will then be taken to the National Assembly of Pakistan. The debate will be initiated to assess the verdict and the Speaker of the Assembly, on the basis of unanimous decision, can file a reference in the Election Commission of Pakistan. "The Election Commission of Pakistan, reviewing all the charges and verdicts against the PM, will issue a notification for de-seating him entirely, however, I must also say that this notification can also be challenged by Gilani," they added.
It is extremely evident that the Prime Minister and the Government will continue to file appeals and prolong the case and the main issue of reopening graft cases against the President and other important members of the Government shall remain unaddressed.
According to Haider, the Government of Pakistan is strategising to gain more and more time till the tenure of the PM itself lapses.
"The strategy is transparent. They will keep filing for reviews till the PM's tenure expires and the entire proceedings become meaningless," he added.
Haider also said, "It is sad that the Government is not complying with judiciary's orders, however, Attorney General of Pakistan, Irfan Qadir, was extremely provocative during the course of the proceedings, turning this whole debacle into a conflict between the judiciary and executive order of Pakistan.
The PPP leadership will attempt at convincing people in Pakistan about the bias of the apex court against the Pakistan Peoples' Party by referring to its verdict regarding the execution of Z.A. Bhutto. This would be done to secure peoples' support and sympathy that may be needed by the PPP during the next elections. |
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