ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court that starts hearing in the Panama Papers disclosures relating to offshore companies on Thursday (October 20) will deal with three different prayers made in five petitions including the one filed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
However, while the apex court has accepted the PTI’s request for early hearing of its petition, it will take up four other pleas one by one which deal with the same subject but seek different remedies.
The PTI’s plea seeks disqualification of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif but other petitions did not share its prayer. Two of them call for formation of a judicial commission to probe the offshore shells; one opposes this option and the fifth one demands inquiry by investigating agencies against the owners of such companies.
The PTI’s plea insists on the ouster of the premier, Finance Minister Senator Ishaq Dar and his son-in-law Captain (retd) Safdar.
On the contrary, Barrister Zafarullah’s petition prayed to the apex court order constitution of a parliamentary committee or panel to look into the Panama Papers scandal, and if there was disagreement on it in the parliament, political parties should move a vote of no confidence motion against the premier. He opposed initiation of any action on Panama Papers, maintaining that offshore investments are not illegal and sending money abroad is neither prohibited nor illegal. He termed other pleas as an attempt to settle political disputes and said establishment of a judicial commission would be an exercise in futility.
In his petition, Jamaat-e-Islami Amir Sirajul Haq did not name the premier as a respondent and urged the court to direct investigating agencies to launch a probe into the Panama Papers scandal, arrest the suspected culprits, recover the public money and bring it back to Pakistan because it was illegally taken out to offshore companies.
Sheikh Rashid has asked the court to appoint an inquiry panel on the lines of the Memogate Commission to look into the allegations against Nawaz Sharif’s family. Advocate Tariq Asad also prayed the same.
However, despite the fact that the Supreme Court has acceded to the PTI’s demand, Imran Khan is going ahead with his public campaign to lay a siege of Islamabad and doesn’t want to wait for its ruling.
“We will block roads leading to government offices by sitting on them,” he has threatened. Will these offices also include the Supreme Court? Evidently, when all roads will be occupied by the PTI protesters, as resolved by him, with a view to rendering the state institutions dysfunctional, the apex court will also be included among them.
What is the justification left for this kind of extreme protest after the highest court has advanced the date of hearing of his petition? Whether his lockdown efforts would be too sweeping actually resulting in shutting down the capital or would be a patchy bid, it will make Pakistan a laughing stock in the eye of the world once again. Definitely, it will give the message that Pakistan is in the grip of deep political instability. Only the PTI chairman can tackle such devastating impression of Pakistan he says he loves most.
No politician, worth the name, having a large following would ever hurl threats like closing down government offices unless all constitutional and legal avenues of getting even his dreamy demands addressed have been exhausted. This is not the case now as the apex court is launching the hearing and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is already seized with the references filed by Imran Khan against the prime minister and the ones forwarded by the National Assembly Speaker and others against him.
But there is a method in the madness. The PTI chairman is actually pronouncing that he has no faith in the apex court; or he doesn’t expect a favourable judgment from it and he wants to mount pressure on it to get a ruling he likes. This is perfectly in accordance with the standard practice and disposition he has abundantly demonstrated for umpteen times over the past three years. But he has been unsuccessful in coercing the government as well as the state institutions into doing what he cherishes.
It is not possible that the Supreme Court will deliver its judgment on the five petitions on October 20 or as per Imran Khan’s wishes. It will obviously take time to complete all the mandatory constitutional and legal requirements that also include giving due time to all the petitioners and respondents to present their side of the story.
However, Imran Khan is in a great hurry as he is desperate to meet a certain deadline and wants to create chaos and anarchy on the streets before that otherwise he would miss the bus to do what he believes a great service to the nation. Only he can belabour what is the real motive behind his haste?