EDITORIAL: With the retirement of Justice Qazi Faez Isa as Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP), a seminal chapter of the nation’s judicial history has ended, but whose final outcome is far from certain, as the ultimate impact of his legacy will continue to evolve in the years ahead.
Having established his reputation as an independent-minded, maverick judge through several rulings, including in the much-cited Faizabad dharna case back in 2017, Justice Isa’s 13-month tenure as chief justice saw several of his verdicts and pronouncements leave many of his early admirers disappointed.
Much like his predecessor Justice Umar Ata Bandial, he presided over a divided court and struggled to heal the growing rifts within the judiciary.
While some of the reforms he introduced – such as the live telecast of judicial proceedings – and the judgements he gave, including those pertaining to women and minority rights, as well as in the presidential reference that examined Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s trial, were entirely welcome and much-needed, the impact of some of his more controversial decisions and his inability to unify a fragmented court have sparked debate about the long-term implications of his tenure.
The ex-CJP’s ruling in the PTI’s electoral symbol case, especially, had grave repercussions not only for the embattled party, but also, one could argue, set the stage for the disputed nature of the February 8 general elections.
Moreover, even though he was part of the minority that dissented from the majority verdict in the Supreme Court’s July 12 order that restored the PTI as a parliamentary party and allocated it reserved seats, as the CJP, it is reasonable to suggest that he had the responsibility to ensure the ruling’s implementation. His apparent reluctance to take decisive action in this regard, one could contend, played a role in undermining the authority of the very court that he presided upon.
Additionally, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi’s recent comments in the NAB amendments case pertaining to Justice Isa, where the former emphasised that “judicial comity requires that, even when we disagree with the decisions of other judges, we do so with respect and constructiveness” also underscore the sometimes prickly, less-than-diplomatic nature of the former CJP’s observations during court proceedings, which many believe did little for the cause of fostering judicial amity.
The recent passage of the 26th Amendment has further complicated the questions surrounding Justice Isa’s legacy. Over the last 15 years, there have been numerous instances of, what many would rightly term, judicial overreach that had grave consequences for the national economy and the country’s politics.
There were instances of elected prime ministers being sent home by the Supreme Court and sovereign contracts signed with foreign investors effectively being cancelled through judicial rulings, as in the case of the Reko Diq project. That, however, didn’t mean that the polity needed to swing to the other extreme, with the government of the day now having an oversized role to play in important judicial matters.
With Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, in his recent interview, crediting Justice Isa for playing a pivotal role in the 26th Amendment’s passage, the jury is truly out on the impact of his legacy on judicial independence and the broader landscape for the judiciary.
The newly-appointed Chief Justice Yahya Afridi now faces a highly onerous responsibility.
With his impeccable credentials, one would expect him to play a calming role and repair the fissures within the judiciary, all the while also making sure that the courts maintain their independence and guard against the Executive’s ingress into judicial proceedings.
His leadership will be crucial in turning the page on Justice Isa’s divisive tenure, and one hopes that he is able to work towards restoring public confidence in state institutions and ensuring the judiciary’s integrity in a complex legal landscape.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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