National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf has slammed the Supreme Court’s alleged “interference” in the affairs of Parliament, stressing that this will only provoke “others” to try and enter its domain.
In an interview with Voice of America, he said Parliament has the authority to reject any unconstitutional decision of the apex court, adding that if the court does not recognize this, then the entire concept of elections is meaningless. He also called upon the chief justice of Pakistan to strive to resolve conflicts between institutions, adding that the government should likewise engage in meaningful dialogue with all stakeholders to resolve the issue of general elections. “Division in politics is necessary, but division within the Supreme Court is dangerous,” he emphasized.
On the issue of a full court—a longstanding demand of the government for cases pertaining to constitutional matters—the speaker said he could not understand why the CJP was resistant to it, as it would help end uncertainty and boost the public’s trust in the judiciary. In a strong stance, he said if the superior judiciary wanted to interfere in legislation, it should just take over Parliament entirely. The “farce” of elections should end if Parliament has to use its legislative authority according to the will of the Supreme Court or a high court, he added.
Referring to a security briefing for lawmakers, Ashraf said the Army chief had expressed his commitment to upholding the Constitution and the supremacy of Parliament. “The country needs ideas like this,” he said, adding that the Army chief had also clarified that there was no new military operation in the offing, but law enforcers would continue intelligence-based operations to eradicate terrorism.
On the matter of He said the resignations of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers members could not be reconsidered, but if the court ruled in favour of the PTI, the members could return to the assembly.