Despite its support in passing the 2008-09 budget by the National Assembly, through which the government increased the number of Supreme Court judges, the PML (N) said that it did not recognise the PCO judges as real judges.
Talking to reporters after National Assembly passed the budget on Sunday almost without any debate on the Finance Bill, PML (N) leader Nisar Ali Khan said that the party would give its recommendations on PPP's 'constitutional package'. "We do not hold the PCO judges real ones," said he despite the fact that most party legislators, except Ayaz Amir, remained silent on increasing the number SC judges through Finance Bill.
This clause remained included in the budget as the government ignored the viewpoint of the opposition in the Senate in which PML (Q) and Jamaat-e-Islami had said that judges strength in the apex court could not be changed through a money bill. The opposition in the Upper House had moved a privilege motion on the issue. Some analysts believe that PML (N) had supported the PPP move as Ayaz Amir raised this issue in the National Assembly on Sunday only after the house had passed the budget.
However, Nisar said that PML (N) adhered to the reinstatement of judges. The party, he said, was still of the view that sacked judges could be restored without amending the constitution. "Judges must be reinstated in accordance with the sprit of the Bhurban Bhurban declaration. They can be reinstated through an executive order," he added.
He clarified that judges could not be restored through Finance Bill. "The PML-N has not supported the judges' re-instatement through the Finance Bill," he said, and added that the PML-N was told that through Finance Bill the salaries of judges would be restored. Therefore, they supported the Finance Bill in the National Assembly, he said.
Meanwhile, another PML (N) leader, Siddiq al Farooq, commenting on the approval of Finance Bill by National Assembly, said that the party favoured the bill "with a heavy heart". He said that the party leadership had a clear stance over judges' issue and, during the Dubai talks, they gave the indication that they could accept the presence of current judges on ad hoc position.
He said that PML (N) hoped that PPP would pay attention to the restoration of the judges after the budget process had been completed. He said that the nation would hear a good news on judges reinstatement very soon.