ISLAMABAD: Syed Naveed Qamar, the federal minister for commerce, stated that all judges of the court should work together to interpret the Constitution not from the perspective of a single judge, but rather the entire judiciary.
He was speaking to the lower house of parliament in response to a special motion introduced by Murtaza Javed Abbasi, the minister for parliamentary affairs, to discuss the current political climate and the political and legal coercion that is occurring as a result of it.
According to Qamar, the nation is at a turning point in its history. During martial law regimes, “unfortunately, we have historically seen there have been encroachments on the role of each institution on the other,” he continued. According to the minister, the executive branch, which includes the judiciary, serves as the ultimate decision-making body.
He said the dictator and former president late General (R) Pervez Musharraf tried to amass all the powers of the legislature and tried to infringe the powers of the Chief Justice of Pakistan but it were the political parties that stood against him. He regretted that the courts had already started to take sides and forgot to stick to its role in letter and spirit as per the constitution. The suo moto power was also being abused time and again, he added.
“Once again, we are at the spot to decide either to let constitution crumpled or ensure national justice that is guarantee to nation’s security,” the minister noted. Syed Naveed Qamar said by the time a decision was made the country would remain the same as it was today. “The courts should make history by making decisions that are acceptable to the entire nation that will be written in golden words,” he ended. Earlier, Minister for Parliamentary Affairs addressed the house to table the special motion. He said this house was formed by the trust and representation of the masses and was bound to give direction to them at these times of crisis and uncertainty.
