I am watching TV and writing these lines. Just now the news has come that Supreme Court of Pakistan has struck down National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO).
As I am changing channels, I just saw Imran Khan demanding mid-term elections. PML(N) guys seem to be asking for the resignation of President on ‘moral’ grounds where as PPP guys seem to be saying ‘nothing doing’ while on record they are saying they ‘welcome’ the decision. Atleast one, Farhatullah Babar has said President ‘will not’ resign.
The implication of this decision is that all the cases taken back as part of reconcilitation will/can be reopened.
On another channel I saw Abdul Hafeez Peerzada and Dr. Mubashir Hassan’s combined press conference where both of them are saying this is a ‘historic’ decision of Supreme Court and it has restored the pride of Pakistan in the comity of nations.
Few minutes ago I was driving across Karachi roads where shops and businesses were geting closed in anticipation of this decision.
Here is the news update at the daily News and the daily Dawn.
Title Photo is courtesy of ZAK
ATP’s related Post: Politics of NRO – List of beneficiaries released
Not only the NRO has been struck down but all the beneficiaries have been put on the ECL according to this update:
http://www.createforpakistan.com/topstory.php
Now we shall see one by one all of the corrupt offenders being brought to justice including the interior minister Rehman Malik.
A great day indeed. I am happy.
However, I am afraid that calls for the President to resign will only create more problems. I am no fan of him and never have been and never will but for the sake of consistency, I’d like to see him end his term on normal terms.
The country is fighting a deadly insurgency and IMO a political chaos now would create more danger.
May be for the sake of the country, let bygones be bygones .. Use this day to prevent a repeat of the past in the future.
No doubt NRO was against the principles of justice, but the entire show was made in such a way that it all seemed to be against PPP. This party is the only one which is really the Peoples’ party, that is why it is whitch-hunted. It also showed that there still is difference between Larkana and Lahore. And entire anti-PPP lobby anywhere, in media, establishment, etc made a common front (once again after ZAB’s judicial murder) behind judiciary.
Some comments from the ATP Facebook Page:
– “It’s not nawaz adliya it’s independent nawaz exploited justice movement in his favour he jumped in it wen it was already started after refusing chaudry to bow on front if musharaf. Remember nawaz was one who attacked adliya ….”
– “it was not nawaz who attacked adliya, there were people like tariq aziz, chaudhary group, aijazul haq, humayon akhtar and few others who later formed the Q league, and they all did on their own. There is no member currently in PMLN who was involved in adliya attack, they all are in Q league or either have joined some other party.”
– “The NRO had already expired in November. The Supreme Court spent time and effort on a non-issue. This Ifthar Chaudhry really loves polits, he decides cases even when no case actually exists. Additionally Mr Zardari has never been convicted in any court in Pakistan of any crimes, and did not need NRO to become President. Accusations and cases don’t matter, convictions do.”
– “To Zardari -AB TERAA KYA BANAY GA KAALIYAA?”
– “WUD ANY BODY LIKE 2 TELL THAT HOW A CINEMA OWNER BECAME A MILLIONAIRE????”
– ” Zindabad .Chief Justice of Pakistan.”
– “Whole Nation Proud of You Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, And Other 16-judge bench.
God Bless You.”
– “thumbs up for CJ……………..”
– ” I wish we can get back to war on terror and good governance ASAP.”
– “Zardari should resign ETHICALLY…If he has ethics…”
– ” i think this decsion of sc has come on wrong time and wrong place.our country is not in a condition to bear much more unstability other than of terrorrism.either gaining something we will lose much more.”
I hope this legal decision sets a good precedent. But we also need to get past it and not let this derail the system entirely. We have enough problems as it is.