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DAWN WIRE SERVICE
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Week Ending : 28 March, 1996 Issue : 02/13
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8 Killers of 300 persons arrested in Lahore
Pakistan supports APHC on poll issue
Kashmir election could lead to more bloodshed
Defence cant be left at others mercy, says Leghari
Govt told not to sabotage SC judgement
SC order targets its own judges says PM
CJ vows to implement decision
Cases from SC ad hoc judges withdrawn
Nawaz sees court verdict as basis for Cooperation
LHCBA meeting ends in fiasco
Leghari, Benazir discuss SC order
NWFP Assembly prorogued after opposition stages walkout
Evidence against Altaf provided to U.K
MQM alleges rigging.
Altaf wants fresh enrolment
Ittefaq group asked to furnish bank gurantee
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BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Govt has nothing to hide about UBL privatisation
70pc of loans will be paid back to creditors
Negative impact of rupee devaluation on exports
POL pipeline: A big private sector initiative
SITE budget proposal Huge borrowings from banks upset economy
Fall across broad front witnessed
Massive activity in PTC vouchers, Hub-Power
Stock stage snap rally as KSE index up by 46 points
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The Judiciary Triumphs Ardeshir Cowasjee
The fruits of Arrogance Ayaz Amir
Do we know what the rule of law means? Editorial Column
Our equation with the neighbours Mahdi Masud
Verdict in the judges case Editorial Column
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World Cup 96 in statistics.
Jansher eliminated from Super Series Final
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960322
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8 killers of 300 persons arrested in Lahore
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Bureau Report
LAHORE, March 25: The Saddar division police have arrested eight
youngsters who were involved in about 300 murder cases in Karachi alone.
They are professional killers and have been on the pay roll of Sipah-i-
Sahaba and the Altaf and Haqiqi factions of the MQM. The SSP said they
had committed about 300 murders in Karachi and were involved in 13
robberies and one murder in Lahore.
He alleged that members of the gang had conspired to make an attempt on
the life of Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto when she was due to arrive at
the Qadhafi Stadium for the final of the Sixth Cricket World Cup on
March 17. Their plan was to attack the stadium with rocket launchers,
killing a number of spectators. Besides, they had planned to attack
with rocket launchers a number of Shia institutions.
Those arrested include the alleged head of the gang, Fahim-ul-Haq. He
and two of his accomplices, Mohammad Asif Khan and Mohammad Asghar Ali
were twice sentenced to death in absentia by different courts of
Karachi. Fahim was involved in 107 cases of murder and dacoities,
including some cases in Lahore.
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960322
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Pakistan supports APHC on poll issue
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Hasan Akhtar
ISLAMABAD, March 21: Pakistan extended full support to the rejection of
Indian plan to hold elections in occupied Kashmir, by the All- Party
Hurriyat Conference (APHC), and once again called upon New Delhi not to
repeat another farcical polls and, instead, put an end to repression of
the people in the Valley and respond to Pakistans offer for a
meaningful dialogue on the Kashmir dispute.
Answering newsmens questions, the spokesman said Pakistan insisted that
any future dialogue with India should be based on an agenda including
the core issue of Kashmir and the non-papers exchanged between Islamabad
and New Delhi, in order to make such talks meaningful. He said India had
rejected Pakistans offer for holding talks on these conditions.
Asked whether Pakistan was aware of the outcome of the talks in New
Delhi with four Kashmiris, claiming to represent a section of the people
in the Valley, the spokesman said such talks were of no consequence. The
APHC, comprising true representatives of the Kashmiris, had already
denounced those four Kashmiris and their attempts to hold talks with New
Delhi authorities, the spokesman added.
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960327
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Kashmir election could lead to more bloodshed
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Rahul Bedi
NEW DELHI: India's decision to hold parliamentary polls in violence-torn
Jammu & Kashmir, under the "umbrella" of security forces, has been
challenged by Kashmiri leaders and, Indian officials say, might lead to
bloodshed.
The firefight between security forces and militants in Kashmir's holiest
Muslim shrine, Hazratbal, which resulted in the death of at least three
people, is a grim reminder that clashes could increase in intensity and
frequency.
Federal Home Ministry officials feared the clash in the shrine in
Srinagar, which houses the holy relic, a hair from the beard of Prophet
Muhammad (PBUEI), could hamper Indian plans to hold voting in the
state's six parliamentary seats.
And though federal home officials in New Delhi maintained May's election
would be a step forward in restoring normalcy in Kashmir - racked by
violence in which thousands of people have died. Kashmiri leaders said
it would be an "exercise in futility".
But Intelligence Bureau officials said it would take just one major
incident to nullify the entire normalisation process. And, though they
were vigilant, they were also keeping their fingers crossed to wish
trouble away.
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960325
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Defence cant be left at others mercy, says Leghari
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ISLAMABAD, March 24: President Farooq Ahmed Khan Leghari declared that
Pakistan is a peace-loving country but in the face of evil designs of
the enemy it has every right to fortify its defence capabilities.
He said, Pakistan does not want to enter into arms race with any
country but at the same time it cannot leave its defence at the mercy of
others. He said Despite facing economic constraints, the government
attaches top priority to this national issue and is making all out
efforts to make it impregnable, he said.
Mr Leghari said, The foreign hand is actively involved in exploiting
the jobless youth into dismantling our unity. We have to fail these
designs of our enemy and this can only be possible if we display unity
and unanimity in our ranks.
This is the war, he stressed, that we have to wage now and we can only
embrace success in this mission if the entire nation stands up to face
this situation collectively.
Pakistan, he said, has commendably played its role in the promotion of
peace in the world. Be it the struggle for independence of the
Kashmiri, Palestinian or Bosnian Muslims, we have always kept ourselves
prepared for extending political, moral and financial help to the
afflicted people.
KASHMIR: President Leghari underlined that lasting peace in the region
can only be ensured if Kashmir issue is fairly and justly resolved in
accordance with the UN resolutions.
He was of the view that The Kashmir dispute cannot be solved by
publicising holding of so-called elections in the held Valley; nor can
it be solved by staging a sham dialogue with self-proclaimed Kashmiri
leaders; nor even by erecting a fence between the held Valley and Azad
Kashmir.
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960323
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Govt told not to sabotage SC judgment
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Bureau Report
LAHORE, March 22: PML president Mian Nawaz Sharif has said that
opposition parties will not allow the government to sabotage the Supreme
Courts decision on the superior court judges appointment.
Talking to his party workers he said that the decision was in fact a
step in the direction of bringing about radical changes in the political
system and towards which he (Mr Sharif) had been indicating for the last
couple of years.
As a matter of fact the Supreme Court has shortened our distance
towards our goal of a just political system in which no government is
allowed to frame autocratic policies, he said.
An independent judiciary, Mr Sharif said, was a fundamental requisite to
make sure that democracy survived and thrived. He said it was also an
opportunity for the government to bow down to Supreme Courts decision
if it was sincere in making parliamentary democracy successful.
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960325
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SC order targets its own judges, says PM
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Ihtashamul Haque
ISLAMABAD, March 24: Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has dispelled the
impression that the recent Supreme Court judgement on the appointment of
judges was against her government and said, judiciary has given a
verdict about some of its own members.
Talking to reporters the Prime Minister pointed out that she was unable
to immediately comment on the Supreme Courts decision. I can not say
whether some of the portions of the judgement are violative of the
constitution as some people believe.
Ms. Bhutto said that the government was carefully going through the
judgment of the Supreme court and would give its formal reaction after
having carefully studied it.
Answering a question, the Prime Minister said the government may file a
review petition if found that the judgment was in violation of the
constitution. But it is not necessary that we would certainly file this
review petition, and let the people see its repercussions after the full
judgement, she added.
She did not believe that the verdict of the apex court in any way was an
expression of no-confidence against the government. The Prime Minister
did not agree with a reporter that the government appointed ad hoc
judges and said, these judges are always appointed by the judiciary.
However, she clarified that whenever the government wanted to appoint ad
hoc judges it sought the opinion of the courts. When we wanted to
appoint additional judges, we consulted them and no one barred us from
consultations with acting judges. We not only consulted the higher court
judges but also discussed with the Supreme Court judges. Why did they
not convey their opinion when we wanted to appoint additional judges,
she asked.
Ms.Bhutto expressed her surprise over the suggestions by some people
that the judgement will have impact on the judiciary as well as on the
executive. It will only affect the judiciary and not the executive, she
believed.
She declared that her government wanted to make the judiciary fully
independent and said, we have tried to appoint best judges in order to
uphold the constitution in case of any crisis in the country.
The appointment of judges, the Prime Minister pointed out, was the
prerogative of the executive throughout the world and that it should not
be seen as some thing surprising in Pakistan. Quoting the constitution
Ms.Bhutto said it very clearly states that it would be the President who
would appoint the judges.
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960327
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CJ vows to implement decision
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Ahmad Hassan Alvi
ISLAMABAD, March 26: Chief Justice of Pakistan, Syed Sajjad Ali Shah
said that the court was heading towards the implementation of its
judgment against the appointment of ad hoc and additional judges in the
superior judiciary.
Asked whether the Supreme Court had sent any proposal to the government
in the light of its judgment, the Chief Justice said: Details about the
correspondence cannot be provided. We are (heading) towards the
implementation.
When his attention was drawn towards the prime ministers statement in
which she had reportedly said that the judgment was delivered in anger
by the honourable judges, the Chief Justice smiled and said: We are
never angry. You can observe us (judges) now. Are we angry?
Asked to comment on the statement of PML lawyer Akram Sheikh that the
government had planned to arrest the judges, he said: We had no
inkling.
Syed Sajjad Ali Shah said he did not get any such impression during the
hearing either. We had no fear of arrest.
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960327
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Cases from SC ad hoc judges withdrawn
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Nasir Malick
ISLAMABAD, March 26: Six ad hoc judges of the Supreme Court did not
attend their offices after the chief justice withdrew the cases from
their courts.
The decision to withdraw these judges from different benches was
reportedly taken at a meeting of the chief justices of the high courts
and the Federal Shariat Court.
Court officials, however, said the chief justice had withdrawn all the
cases from five ad hoc and one acting judge. But there was one
exception: Justice Mukhtar Junejo, acting judge of the Supreme Court was
allowed to work.
Those who have been reportedly relieved of their duties are acting judge
Mir Hazar Khan Khoso and ad hoc judges Raja Afrasiab, Riaz Hussain
Sheikh, Bashir Jehangiri, Munir Khan and Mamoon Qazi. They have been
asked to report to their respective high courts, a court official told
Dawn.
The court official said two permanent judges of the Supreme Court,
Justice Abdul Hafeez Memon and Justice Irshad Hasan Khan who are acting
chief justices of the Sindh and Lahore High Courts have reportedly been
asked to relinquish the charge of acting chief justices and join the
Supreme Court because of the shortage of judges.
The Supreme Court has a total strength of 16 confirmed judges. Now it is
left with a total of 11 judges, two of whom are acting chief justices.
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960327
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Nawaz sees court verdict as basis for cooperation
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Mohammad Malick
ISLAMABAD, March 26: The leader of the opposition surprised the
galleries and the Treasury benches by making an unconditional offer of
turning the Supreme Court verdict into a basis of larger cooperation.
He said the government must not view the verdict as being anti-
government or pro-opposition but rather as being a good verdict which
must be further channelised into producing far reaching positive
effects.
He said: This government accuses us of being anti-democratic. I offer
to them, lets take this verdict as a basis of starting a process of a
larger cooperation between the government and the opposition.
While pin-drop silence prevailed among the Treasury ranks, Nawaz Sharif
went on to state that the opposition never expected or had demanded
the government to resign as a result of this verdict and advised the
government against making this a matter of life and death for itself.
He invited Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto to come in the House herself
and explain her views about the verdict rather than insulting judges at
public functions.
He said instead of denying the presence of a serious crisis, the
government must concede that when a whole batch of Supreme Court judges
are sent packing then a serious crisis does exist.
He said the time for questioning the merits of the decision had passed
and it was time for the government to submit to the courts verdict.
Reiterating his earlier offer, he said that it was time for the
government and the opposition to get together and talk about the
situation.
Nawaz Sharifs unexpected offer clearly caught the ministers unguarded
as a nervous looking law minister could be seen conferring frantically
with other ministers for the possible formulation of an appropriate
reply.
It was thus an uncertain looking N.D. Khan who stood up to respond from
the Treasury side welcoming the gesture and saying that the government
will respond to this offer.
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960328
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LHCBA meeting ends in fiasco
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Shujaat Ali Khan
LAHORE, March 27: Lawyers were beaten up, injured and arrested by police
in the premises of Lahore High Court, which immediately commenced an
inquiry into the incident by one of its senior judges.
Earlier a clash between rival groups of lawyers' community was averted
when the Lahore High Court Bar Association indefinitely adjourned a
meeting convened by it to consider two draft resolutions moved by two
partisan groups of its members on the implementation of the Supreme
Court order in the judges case.
About 15 lawyers were injured, with Advocates Aslam Zar, former LHCBA
secretary, Khurram Wasti and Zahid Jamil Butt, who later visited the bar
room with a bandaged head and arms, receiving serious injuries. Former
LHCBA president Zaman Qureshi, Advocate Mushtaq Tahirkheli, political
secretary to Nawaz Sharif, and advocates Imtiaz Kafi and Shahid Bilal
were also hurt besides a court reporter. Several cars were also damaged.
Three lawyers taken into custody from within the high court premises
were released through the intervention of LHCBA office-bearers. The
committee has taken serious notice of the incident.
The PLF members strongly condemned the lathi-charge but claimed that it
was provoked by 'outsiders'.
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960328
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Leghari, Benazir discuss SC order
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Nasir Malick
Islamabad, March 27: Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto met President Farooq
Leghari along with her legal aides to discuss the constitutional
complications likely to be faced by the government in implementing the
Supreme Court decision on judges appointment.
Government source said the two leaders also discussed a report prepared
by the Law Ministry on the implications of the Supreme Court judgement.
He said the report was prepared on war footings to give a clear picture
to the president and the prime minister about the implications of the
Supreme Court order.
He said the consultations at the highest level also assessed the
government options in this regard. The source also maintained that no
decision has yet been taken on this issue. "The president would like to
wait for the detailed judgment," he said.
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960322
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NWFP Assembly prorogued after opposition stages walkout
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Bureau Report
PESHAWAR, March 21: The NWFP Assembly was prorogued sine die after the
joint opposition walked out as a protest when the treasury benches
stalled their efforts to suspend the rules of business to table a
resolution regarding Social Action Board (SAB).
The four-member Jamaat-i-Islami parliamentary group also joined the
oppositions boycott in its bid to press the House to unanimously adopt
a resolution against the execution of developmental schemes under the
federal governments social action programme (SAP).
Following the oppositions walkout, the speaker, was of the opinion that
the opposition reacted due to misunderstanding as they were not given
any consent for or against their point of view.
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960326
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Evidence against Altaf provided to UK
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Staff Correspondent
LONDON, March 25: The government of Pakistan has submitted to the
British government documents which, it claims, contain evidence about
the involvement of the Mohajir Qaumi Movement leader in terrorist
activities, it was learnt here from official sources.
The documents were handed over to the Foreign Office and the Home Office
by a special team of senior intelligence officers led by Rahman Malik.
The two-member team called on the foreign and the home offices to hand
over the documents which are understood to contain audio and visual
recordings to corroborate the documentary evidence put forward by the
Pakistan government which for sometime has been pressing Britain to send
MQM Chief Altaf Hussain, back to Pakistan to face prosecution on charges
of involvement directly or indirectly in terrorist activities.
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960322
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MQM alleges rigging
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Staff Reporter
KARACHI, March 21: Senator Ishtiaq Azhar, the Convenor of MQM
Coordination Committee, accused the PPP and MQM Haqiqi of indulging in
malpractices in the KWSB employees union election.
Malpractices witnessed during the Water Board election is a rehearsal
for a similar act during municipal elections and has exposed the true
intent of the government, said the Senator.
He accused the PPP and Haqiqi activists and government officials of
forcefully occupying union offices in Landhi, Karsaz, Korangi and
Society and kidnapping of at least 200 voters.
The coordination committee also demanded an end to the ongoing operation
in the urban areas of the province. In this context, it has sought the
indulgence of the Chief Justice of the Sindh High Court.
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960328
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Altaf wants fresh enrolment
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Staff Reporter
KARACHI, March 27: MQM chief Altaf Hussain rejected the new electoral
list, saying that it was manipulated to defranchise the Mohajir
community.
Speaking to city journalists from London over telephone, Mr Hussain
said: "The mala fide intentions of the government is evident from the
fact that the names of elected representatives of the MQM are not
included in the list."
He called for preparing the voters list afresh and said more time be
given for this exercise. He suggested that anyone who presented himself
with the national identity card, his or her name should be included in
the list.
Referring to the developments following the Supreme Court's order
regarding the appointment of judges, the MQM chief said the government
was not respecting its verdict. He said: "When the government is not
respecting the judiciary, how can it expect of Altaf Hussain to seek
justice from a court.
The MQM chief denied that he had suffered a nervous breakdown or had any
cardiac problem as claimed by Interior Minister Naseerullah Babar. "This
is totally wrong and aimed at creating despair among MQM supporters,"
said Mr Hussain."
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960326
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Ittefaq group asked to furnish bank guarantee
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LAHORE, March 25: The Chairman, Banking Tribunal Lahore, Aslam Nagi has
ordered the Ramazan Sugar Mills, Hamza Board Mills and Brother Steels of
Ittefaq Group of Industries to furnish a bank guarantee of Rs 245.985
million within 15 days.
The Tribunal had dismissed the review petition filed by Hamza Board
Mills with the result that the Company shall have to deposit the suit
amount or to furnish a bank guarantee.
In the same case, the Tribunal ordered that the name of Mrs. Shehzadi
Ilyas be deleted from the record as her signatures were forged. As
regards the other such defendants namely Yahya Siraj and Farrukh Siraj,
the Tribunal framed issues and fixed the case for evidence on April 3.
The Banking Tribunal while accepting the application of Habib Bank had
ordered the defendant, Ramzan Sugar Mills to furnish a bank guarantee
and for the suit amount amounting to Rs.245.985 million within 15 days.
960328
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Govt has nothing to hide about UBL privatisation
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ISLAMABAD, March 27: Chairman Privatisation Commission Syed Naveed Qamar
said that the government has nothing to hide about the privatisation of
United Bank and invited the opposition to participate in the
Privatisation proceedings.
"It is the right of every citizen of the country and the elected
representatives to know about the selling of units" and " I invite the
opposition to witness the privatisation proceedings," he responded to a
volley of questions asked by the opposition deputies, including their
leader Nawaz Sharif, about the privatisation of the United Bank.
He said," the government is pursuing a transparent privatisation
policy." He confirmed that the Bank of England had written a letter
seeking information about the Saudi Basharahil Group, one of the two
pre-qualified groups willing to buy the bank.
He said the Bank of England is the governing bank in the United Kingdom
where six branches of the UBL are operating. "Being a governing bank it
is the right of the Bank of England to ask about a party willing to buy
a bank governed by it," he added.
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960326
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70pc of loans will be paid back to creditors
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Aslam Sheikh
ISLAMABAD, March 25: At least 70 percent of new loans Pakistan seeks
from the Western Consortium next month will virtually revert to its
creditors as repayments on the outstanding debt of over dollars 21
billion.
The nations annual debt servicing liability has now soared to over
dollars 2 billion. Taking that into account, the net transfer of
external resources from the Western aid club scheduled to meet in Paris
on April 23 may not exceed dollars 700 to 800 million if new so-called
aid pledges total dollars 2.7 to 2.8 billion for the forthcoming
financial year.
Pakistan now repays over dollars one billion to three major creditors
annually US, Japan and Germany. Apart from dollars 350 million repaid
to US, Pakistan returns approximately dollars 280 million to Japan and
250 million to Germany every year. Repayments to the World Bank and
Asian Development Bank also add considerable burden approximately
dollars 650 million half of which represents interest payment alone.
As a whole, according to official sources, debt servicing has more than
doubled over the past one decade alone i.e. from dollars 788 million in
1984-85 to dollars 1810 million in 1994- 95.
Over the past five or six years with the receding in the background as a
creditor, Japan has emerged as the single largest donor to Pakistan. It
has committed around dollars 5 billion upto last June with dollars 3.2
already disbursed and the balance is in the pipeline.
Pakistan contracted total loans of dollars 32.5 billion till last
financial year including dollars 10 to 11 billion which are still
unutilised but tied to certain projects. Incidentally, external debt,
though manageable, represents 35 percent of the Countrys GDP.
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960323
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Negative impact of rupee devaluation on exports
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Sultan Ahmed
DEVALUATION of the rupee continues to be the principal vehicle of the
government in its efforts to boost the sagging exports, but it is
proving to be too inadequate an instrument for the kind of export
volumes we need and can achieve as that has not been followed by
comprehensive supporting measures or a red post-devaluation therapy.
That is indicated by the fact the while the rupee has depreciated by 247
percent in relation to the U.S. dollar since it was delinked from the
dollar and brought under a managed float in 1982, the increase in
exports in real terms has not been as large as that. Exports have risen
from 2.958 billion dollars in 1980-81 to around $8 billion but if the
dollar is adjusted for its real value vis-a-vis the strong currencies,
including its 11.53 percent depreciation against Japanese yen and 12.14
percent in 1993 and 1994 the value of the dollar has been lost by over
50 percent.
So even while our exports in dollars touched the 8 billion mark last
year from 2.958 billion dollars in 1980-81 the real export gains have
not been commensurate with the massive depreciation of the rupee and the
hardships it has been causing the people who have to pay incredibly high
prices for their imported goods and POL in rupees.
And yet devaluation of the rupee continues to be the principal mechanism
for boosting the exports which may not exceed $ 8.5 billion this year
instead of the targeted increase of 14 percent. Following the steady
devaluation strategy the rupee has been devalued four times in small
time span since the large seven percent devaluation of the rupee on
October 28. the last devaluation of six paisa against the dollar took
place on March 14 and brought down the rupee to 34.52 to dollar while
the free market rate is 36.74 to a dollar.
The rupee was devalued by 14.57 percent in 1993 and Mr. Moeen Qureshi as
the caretaker Prime Minister described his part of that as a on-time
devaluation but instead of the exports going up in 1993-94 substantially
they went down by 2 percent.
And last year exports went up by 17.9 percent despite the fact that
devaluation of the rupee in 1994 was only 2.21 percent, or for the whole
of 1994-95 1.3 percent. And that happened as world prices of our exports
went up particularly textiles. For the same reason our imports went up
by 16.7 percent against a fall of 13.6 percent the year before.
Mere illusion
Mr. Salman Farooqi, Secretary, Ministry of Commerce talks of the rise of
exports by $ 119 million dollars in February as the result of some
official steps taken to boost exports, but that could as well be a
passing phenomenon unless adequate and effective steps are taken to
raise the exports which inched up during the first eight months of this
financial year by only 2.20 percent against the target of 14 percent,
while imports shot up by 18 percent against the target of 10.6 percent
growth belying the forecast that substantial devaluation of the rupee
and the 10 percent rise in the regulatory duty and five percent duty on
the items untaxed then, would bring the imports down to lower than the
targeted rise of 10.6 percent. As a result, the country was left with a
staggering trade deficit of 2.37 billion dollars in the eight-month
period which was double the deficit of the same period last year.
We now have officials, including those of the State Bank of Pakistan,
complaining that the Federal Bureau of Statistics had under-reported
exports by $800 million compared to the Export Promotion Bureaus and
State Banks figures and out of that an upward revision has been only to
the extent of 169 million dollars. Usually the State Bank figures are
below the Ministry of Commerce or Customs figures as it takes into
account only the money committed or earned and not merely the volume of
physical exports or export claims which could or could not be valid. But
for once we are facing the problem of the State Bank complaining of
under-reporting of exports by the Federal Bureau of Statistics. The
three agencies should be able to reconcile their figures and come to the
correct one instead of leaving the people baffled or amused.
If the exports do not go up substantially this year it will be because
the government has done through its mini-budget the same as was done at
the time of Mr. Moeen Qureshi as caretaker Prime Minister. He followed
his substantial devaluation with a 20 percent rise in power and gar
charges, and increase in POL prices, apart from the rise in duty on
Vanaspati by Rs. 3 per kilo and the Rs. 100 rise in wages which he
announced. As a result, the cost of import and production shot up and
eventually ended in negative growth of exports.
The mini-budget last October has done the same thing as well as brought
in the regulatory duty of 10 percent on the taxed items and five percent
on the non-taxed. All that has increased the cost of production and that
along with the high interest rates and rise in wages is making exports
more expensive, and so there has been a large fall in exports vis-a-vis
the high target. The fall is even more visible in the area of textiles
in a year when cotton production has risen to 10.5 million bales.
Export of silk and synthetics fell by 33 per cent in the first seven
months of this financial year, to $209 million compared to $314 million
in the same period last year, which itself marked a fall of 11.26
percent from $648 million in the preceding year.
There has been substantial fall in the export of a variety of textiles,
including a fall of 16 percent in garments, of nine percent in textile
made-ups, seven percent in knit-wear and 4.81 percent in fabrics. Such
widespread losses could not be compensated an 8.7 percent rise in
beadwear exports and 2.48 percent rise with in towels.
Sharp reduction in the payment of duty drawback and extraordinary delay
in repayment are said to be two of the reasons for poor performance by
exporters of silk and synthetics. Other exports too have similar
complaints. Mr. Khalid Amin, a major exporter of synthetics says that
Pakistans clothes are considered C grade in international markets due
to the sub-standard quality of the filament yarn provided by the local
manufacturers.
Clearly the problem cannot be solved by sending larger trade delegations
abroad, like the 70-member delegation which went to Australia recently
or the larger one which went to South Korea earlier, or the by the
businessmen who go with the Prime Minister on her foreign trips. Nor can
much be gained by hastily arranged trade fairs or participation in
foreign trade fairs in the light of the poor quality of our exports or
the very low-value added in a world which is becoming increasingly
quality conscious. Raising the quality and value of our products has to
become a national pre-occupation and the government and the private
sector have to come up with the requisite training institutions for
that.
Meanwhile, the country is being treated to a number of contradictory
news items in respect of exports. It was earlier reported that the
Export Promotion Bureau proposed giving 50 percent freight charges for
exports by air to Central Asia but now it is reported to have dropped
the idea. It has also been reported the freight subsidy given for export
of fruits and vegetables with gulf has resulted in a fall in their
exports.
And while the Prime Minister and others have been advertising Pakistan
as the gateway to Central Asia an announcement by the Central Board of
Revenue says the government has amended the Open Bonded Manufacturing
Rules, 1989, and restricted export of goods manufactured under these
rules to any country by the land route.
And while our export of fish has been falling even when it has been
small the Karachi Fish Harbour is reported to have become a foul
smelling garbage island again while the newly built fish harbour at
Korangi is not being used because of the violence in the area.
Against such a backdrop exports cannot rise substantially, or the value-
added content of the exports soar, nor the steady devaluation of the
rupee which pushes up prices of imports give us the kind of better deal
we expect.
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960323
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POL pipeline: a big private sector initiative
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Muhammad Aslam
PAKISTANS annual consumption of petroleum products is expected to grow
to 29 million tonnes, worth $3 billion before the turn of the century
and the big question facing economic managers is how to create basic
infrastructure facilities to transport this huge quantity from the port
areas to the distribution outlets throughout the country. The Shell
Pakistan-led consortium, which offers to build 800-km pipeline costing
$600 million seems to have come at a right time and saved the government
from an impending crisis.
There could be more than one options before the government, keeping in
view the economies of scale but it must opt for the cheapest, safest,
swifter and technically perfect modes of transportation of POL products.
Pakistan will need 1,600 22-tonner oil tankers daily to feed on all the
thermal power units for which Memorandum of understanding (MOUS) have
already been signed, a survey conducted by some of the leading oil
distribution companies reveals.
Nobody will disagree that the existing supply and logistic system has
almost become obsolete as the oil haulers, keeping in view the growing
demand, might not be able to match the demands of the unfolding
distribution scenario.
But will our existing road transport system or the roads prove capable
of handling that massive workload in the coming year? road transport
experts ask, adding, The answer well be a plain No.
According to figures available from the major oil marketing companies
oil is currently transported to the interior of the country by road
through well over 15,000 tankers owned by 1,200 contractors.
A recent seminar held in Karachi by Shell (Pakistan) to have an overview
of Pakistans oil industry has highlighted many problems facing the
industry and offered workable solutions. The main emphasis was, however,
on the transportation and distribution network for obvious reasons.
Pakistan is not an oil producer like Saudi Arabia or Kuwait but there
is oil though not much and search for it must continue, T.V. Higgins,
managing director of Shell (Pakistan) told to the participants of the
seminar.
However, hunt for oil is on and big oil find in the Badin belt has
raised hopes that massive investment being made by the foreign investors
could prove more productive.
Higgins observations points to the fact that Pakistans efforts to
attain self-sufficiency in oil production might still be far away and it
will remain at the receiving end for some decades to come and needs to
streamline its transportation system.
Pakistans average oil production is about 2,000 bpd (barrels per day as
against Saudi Arabias 30,000 bpd but it abounds in gas reserves which a
equally precious, Higgins says. The developing oil scenario, therefore,
highlights the need and importance of transporting POL products through
a network of pipelines connected with the main line as is being done in
the major producing countries of the world.
The system, considered to be most efficient and economical has long been
in operation if the previous governments have in mind the importance of
this vital sector. The present government probably could not alone raise
funds for this gigantic pipeline project as it was engaged with some
other priorities project, but has encouraged the private sector to take
up the project.
Shell (Pakistans) initiative to build an 800-KM pipeline linking port
area storage facilities with the distribution network of the country,
therefore, came at the right time and was widely acclaimed by both the
government and the private sector against the backdrop of vital national
interests. The idea to have a pipeline was there long ago but no one was
ready to bell the cat.
Three cheers for Higgins for at last having expedited installation of a
$600 million pipeline as he has not only played a sponsoring role but
also managed to set up a consortium of eight major distribution
companies, each one of which will have a stake in the pipeline project.
The government needs to provide all back-up facilities to this great
private initiative.
The oil pipeline, which will be ready by 2000, will supply oil to the
mid-country refinery at Mehmoodkot, near Multan, having an annual
processing capacity of 4.25 million tonnes for onward distribution of
POL products to Central Punjab and up north. It will meet 30 percent of
the POL demand of these areas.
The eight consortium members will have in the new company an equity
share in the following ratio: Shell (Pakistan) 25 percent, Pak-Arab
Refinery, 20 percent, Eid Company of Saudi Arabia, 15 percent, PSO 10
percent, AMEC Utilities of UK 10 percent IFC 10 percent Army Welfare
Trust 5 percent, and Caltex 5 percent.
The news of Pakistans national petroleum products pipelines was
promptly pithed up by India, which on March 15, announced the formation
of an identical company in the public sector to build Rs 35 billion POL
products pipeline network. Indias POL product demand is expected to
jewel to 100 million tonnes during the next three year but it has the
same transportation problem, as Pakistan does.
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960328
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SITE budget proposals 'Huge borrowings from banks upset economy'
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff Reporter
KARACHI, March 27: Huge borrowings from the banks by the government
during the last five years have upset the economy due to which the
government's contention to achieve projected growth rate of 6.5 percent
in 1995-96 seems quite optimistic.
The government in 1995-96 had decided to borrow Rs 28.1 billion for
budgetary support but by the end of January 1996 it had already borrowed
Rs 59.5 billion against 1994-95 where budgetary borrowing had stood at
Rs 27 billion, less than Rs 19 billion in 1993-94, wherein the target
was fixed at Rs 15 billion.
The above situation shows high rate of government's borrowings and in
1994-95 the growth rate was 4.7 percent as against the target of 6.9 per
cent.
In order to achieve the targeted growth, the SITE Association of
Industry has proposed to the government to control non-development
expenditures.
In a package of 1996-97 budget proposals to the government, the SITE
Association suggested to the government to further reduce the mark-up
rate by four percent in order to boost industrialisation because the
present rate of 19 percent was too high compared to India, China and
Taiwan.
The Association proposed that rate of interest for loan and advances to
industry should be fixed at 10 percent while import licence fee of six
percent on import of machinery and spare parts should also be withdrawn.
Regarding fix sales tax system, the Association urged the government to
continue the system for another five years because it had proved
lucrative for the government as far as the government revenue earnings
were concerned.
To minimise the burden of tax on industry, the government should impose
tax on income of land barons. Wealth tax on agriculture be fixed for per
produce unit at least Rs 500 compared to present Rs 200, the Association
proposed.
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960323
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Fall across broad front witnessed
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Mohammad Aslam
STOCKS fell across a broad front during the preceding week as investors
were not inclined to take new positions at the falling prices but there
were no apparent reasons for the renewed sell-off.
There is certainly a major shift in the investment climate owing to a
combination of negative factors including a loud whispering on new taxes
on the share business.
As widely feared the KSE 100-share price index broke the psychological
barrier of 1,600 points and was last quoted at as compared to 1,638.26 a
week earlier.
Most of the MNCs in the chemical and pharmaceutical sectors showed
divergent movements amid active bouts of buying and selling. Lever
Brothers followed them.
Bulk of the support was, however remained confined to BOC Pakistan,
Engro Chemicals, Dawood Hercules, ICI Pakistan Highnoon Lab and Hoechst
Pakistan, closing mixed.
The most active list was again topped by PTC vouchers, Hub-Power, lucky
Cement, ICI Pakistan, Fauji Fertiliser, LTV Modaraba and Dhan Fibre.
Trading volume fell to 135 million shares from the last weeks 159
million shares. Bulk of the alternate bouts of buying and selling,
however, remained confined to PTC vouchers.
Hub-Power was the second most active scrip, which accounted for about 35
million shares, finishing modestly lower. Fauji Fertiliser was also
actively traded.
Trading was largely selective as bargain hunters and foreign buyers were
not inclined to move out of the safe havens and the current active,
leaving all other sectors modestly traded.
Lucky Cement, ICI Pakistan and some other current favourites were also
traded actively but mostly on the lower side, reflecting liquidation
from weakholders.
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960327
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Massive activity in PTC vouchers, Hub-Power
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Commerce Reporter
KARACHI, March 26: Massive activity in PTC vouchers and Hub-Power pushed
the turnover figure on the Karachi Stock Exchange to a record 74 million
shares.
PTC vouchers accounted for 38 million shares, surpassing their previous
single-session record of 30 million shares, Hub-Power was traded for 28
million shares.
The market opened substantially higher despite heavy battering of the
last two sessions as until noon the index was higher by well over 20
points but late selling again pushed the market back in the minus
territory.
After initial rise, the KSE 100-share price index finally ended lower by
5.85 points at 1,482.84 as compared to 1,488.69 a day earlier,
reflecting the weakness of the base shares.
Minus signs again dominated the list, most of the MNCs remained under
pressure on renewed selling and rolling of positions to some low-priced
issues on other counters.
Shell Pakistan was leading among them falling by another Rs 7 apparently
on post-dividend profit-taking. PSO followed it falling by Rs 4.
Others were led by Philips, Al-Ghazi Tractors, BOC Pakistan, Siemens
Pakistan, Hoechst Pakistan, Reckitt and Colman, Bata Pakistan, Engro
Chemicals and Fauji Fertiliser, falling by one rupee to Rs 2.
Among the local leading shares, which suffered modest decline, Century
Insurance, Dadabhoy Insurance, Jubilee Spinning, Cherat Cement and
D.G.Khan Cement were leading.
Some of the ICP mutual funds came in for active short-covering at the
lower levels and ended partially recovered under the lead of Third and
4th ICP, 6th, 13th and 15th ICPs, and blue chips such as Crescent Bank,
Adamjee Insurance, and Telecard, rising by one rupee to Rs 10.
Askari Insurance, Metro Life Insurance, Faran Sugar, Fecto Cement, Sui
Northern and Indus Motors were among the other prominent gainers.
The most active list was topped by PTC vouchers, lower 15 paisa on
37.760m shares followed by Hub-Power, easy 50 paisa on 27.856m shares,
Fauji Fertiliser after the news of over subscription of its new issue of
new plant at Port Qasim, lower one rupee on 2.078m shares, Lucky Cement,
up 45 paisa on 11.654m shares, ICI Pakistan, higher 35 paisa on 1m
shares, LTV Modaraba, steady 15 paisa on 0.247m shares, MCB, up 75 paisa
on 0.141m shares, and Faysal Bank, off 25 paisa on 0.101m shares.
Trading volume soared to 73.811m shares from the previous 50.484m shares
thanks to heavy dealings in PTC and Hub-Power. There were 291 actives,
out of which 146 shares suffered fractional decline, while 86 rose, with
59 holding on to the last levels.
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960328
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Stocks stage snap rally as KSE index up by 46 points
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Commerce Reporter
KARACHI, March 27: The KSE 100-share index recovered 45.77 points at
1,528.61 as compared to 1,482.84 a day earlier, reflecting the strength
of the base shares.
Bulk of the support was, however, remained confined to PTC vouchers and
Hub-Power. While the former was traded higher by Rs 1.45 on 29 million
shares, the latter also gained as much on 24 million shares.
Most of the leading scrips recovered smartly under the lead of PSO,
Brooke Bond and Parke-Davis, which showed gains ranging from Rs 5 to 12,
biggest being in the last one. They were followed by blue chips such as
ICP SEMF, Adamjee Insurance, Dewan Salman, Datacom, BOC Pakistan, Dawood
Hercules, Engro Chemicals, Fauji Fertiliser and Lever, which showed
gains ranging from Rs 2 to 5.
Bank, cement and energy shares led the marked advance, rising sharply on
active short-covering at the lower levels, finishing higher under the
lead of Askari Bank, Faysal Bank, MCB, and Bank Of Punjab. Maple Leaf
Cement, D.G.Khan Cement, Pakistan Slag Cement, and Cherat Cement were
leading and so were EFU and Adamjee in insurance sector.
Barring sharp decline in Dadabhoy insurance, and Orix Leasing on stray
selling, which fell by Rs 2 to 8.50 and so did Shell and Cyanamid
Pakistan, losses elsewhere were modest. Hoechst Pakistan, Knoll,
Telecard, Pakistan Oil fields and some other leading shares also fell
fractionally.
The most active list was again topped by PTC vouchers, higher Rs 1.45 on
28.637m shares followed by Hub-Power, also up Rs 1.45 on 24.340m shares,
Fauji Fertiliser, up Rs 3.40 on 2.265m shares, Lucky Cement, firm 45
paisa on 1.233m shares, ICI Pakistan, up one rupee on 0.948m shares,
Maple Leaf Cement, steady 75 paisa on 0.324m shares, Dhan Fibre, higher
90 paisa on 0.235m shares, and LTV Modaraba, firm 30 paisa on 0.280m
shares. There were several other notable deals also.
Trading volume fell to 62.650 m shares from the previous 74m shares.
There were 333 actives out of which 178 shares rose sharply, while 103,
with 52 remaining pegged at the last levels.
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960322
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The judiciary triumphs
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Ardeshir Cowasjee
ON the credit side, giving credit where credit is due:
Firstly to Petitioner Rais-ul-Mujahadeen Habib-ul-Wahab-ul- Khairi, an
unpurchasable commodity, an advocate of integrity, a man who goes to war
fired by his convictions, fighting against the unjust, the squanderers
of the nations wealth, the abusers of power. Credit to him also for his
persistence. And to his able assistant, Saleem Sheikh.
Khairi, like many of us, was convinced that there was something very
drastically wrong with the way in which the judges of our superior
courts were being appointed, transferred, harassed, in short,
manipulated to suit the governments ends and to the disadvantage of the
people, he filed his constitutional petition in the Supreme Court, and
he pleaded his own case.
To the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Sajjad Ali shah, and to the judges
who sat on the Supreme Court Bench to hear Khairis petition, Justices
Ajmal Mian, Fazal Ilahi, Manzoor Hussain Sial and Mir Hazar Khan Khoso.
The first three have been distinguished Chief Justices (Sindh and
Peshawar) in whom the people have great confidence, the fourth was a
respected judge of the Lahore High Court, and the fifth was a judge of
the Balochistan High Court who was merely an ad hoc judge of the Supreme
Court. Realising the importance of the subject of the petition, they
admitted it for hearing, they heard the case with great patience over a
period of just under five months (from November 5, 1995, to March 13,
1996) and at the end, on March 20, delivered what truly is a landmark
judgment, truly historical, as balanced and comprehensive as was
possible to hand down under the prevailing circumstances.
To the senior-most amicus curiae, former law minister and attorney
general, Jadoogar of Jeddah Sharifuddin Pirzada, for the hard work put
in, for his mastery of case law, for his provision of fresh source
material, for his lucid arguments, and for his expert, wise and
comprehensive guidance of the court. The day he closed his arguments
marked his 50th anniversary at the Bar.
To Akram Shaikh, President of the Supreme Court Bar Association, who
lent his substantial weight to the cause, who explained most explicitly
the wonky conception of the government lawyers interpretation of the
word consultation and of their understanding of practice at the Bar
(that merely enrolment is a sufficient qualification without actual
practice or standing.
To the Lahore High Court Bar Association for deputing Professor Riazul
Hasan Gilani to expound so well on Islamic jurisprudence in relation to
the points raised by Khairi, with particular reference to the limited
functions to be performed by Acting Chief Justices.
To Chief Justice Ahmadi, of the Supreme Court of India, for his
unambiguous pronouncement: He stated that the judiciary does not seek an
expanding role but that it has had to extend its jurisdiction by, at
times, issuing novel directions to the executive, something it would
never have resorted to had the other two democratic institutions
functioned in an effective manner. Judicial activism thus assumes a
democratic purpose.
On the debit side:
The Government of Pakistan which so loudly, in shrill and full voice,
flaunts its commitment to the independence of the judiciary and trumpets
its high regard for that institution. It has had printed news items,
interviews, and columns galore, written by people of little credibility
or worth. It thrives on wrong, on riding roughshod over all and sundry,
and on getting its way regardless of the means. Its sole aim is to
remain in power, for term after term, and wield it unscrupulously. Why
were additional judges of the High Courts of Sindh and Lahore confirmed
or made permanent in such indecent haste, in the hours of darkness, the
night before the judgment was to be announced? Where was the emergency
or urgency?
We admire the judges for their fortitude in withstanding the pressure
that was brought to bear on them. Amicus Pirzada is being dealt his
share of harassment. Petitioner Khairi also came in for rough treatment.
Possessed of little material wealth, he did not have much to lose but
even so his car was damaged and his person threatened.
The Attorney General: Qazi Jameel is an amiable man, who
constitutionally holds office during the pleasure of the President (in
effect, the Prime Minister). It is his bounded duty to give advice to
the government only on such matters as may be referred or assigned to
him, and also to assist the court independently. He has been heard to
say, when the government does something particularly nasty, that his
advice was not sought and therefore he was helpless in the matter.
Veteran Yahya Bakhtiar: He followed the brief given to him, expounded
at length, but his heart did not seem to be in line with his head. He
did his best to uphold his clients conceptions, but was unsuccessful.
Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan: I no longer use the prefix Cambridge in
deference to that university and to the muted protests of two of my
senior counsel, Cambridge men Khalid Anwer (St Johns) and Makhdoom Ali
Khan (Corpus Christi). As bidden by his client, he was hell-bent on
upholding the cause of politicising the judiciary for the governments
self- preservation, and to the peoples detriment.
To the courtroom on Sunday, March 17: Justice Khosos chair was removed
from the Bench and the Chief Justice announced that the brother judge
was not able to be in court for reasons beyond his control. On March
20 he was still absent when the short order was announced, which, by the
time this is printed, will have been reproduced in the Press.
Significantly, our High Courts will now not be burdened by permanently
Acting Chief Justices, the very nature of whose designations makes
them feel insecure. An independent judge can no longer be punished and
exiled to the Andamans (Chief Justice of the Sindh High Court Nasir
Aslam Zahid will now return from the Shariat bench).
The constitutional meaning of the word consultation has been well
defined. An acting CJ cannot be a consultee. No man considered unfit and
unsuitable by the Chief Justice of Pakistan and the Chief Justice of the
High Court concerned can be appointed as a judge. Safeguards against
political considerations have been built in and one now remains assured
that ad hocism has been buried for good.
Reactions:
>From Abida Hussain (better known as Chandi), the sprightly opposition
leader: We are jubilant, but the people fear that the government will
not honour the Supreme Court order. Nothing surprising about that, I
responded. No democratic freely and fairly elected government of
Pakistan can live with a strong judiciary. The government, ill-advised
as it is, will pull every trick in the book to delay or frustrate the
implementation. Get your train-marchers off the train and onto the
barricades to build up public opinion and counter all unscrupulous
moves.
>From Dera Bugti came news from the Nawabs intelligence chief, Wadera
Ghulam Haider, his Edgar Hoover, that the government is conspiring to
kill his tribal chieftain in a staged encounter, and that the besieged
Nawab Mohammed Akbar Shahbaz Khan, Tumandar Bugti, wanted a word with
me. He came on the line. I asked who exactly it was that was after his
blood. Forget that, said the ageing tiger, that I can handle. But I have
just heard that a very fair order has been declared by the Supreme
Court. Can you fax me a copy? Of course, I said, now that the supremacy
of the law finally concerns you.
>From Delhi, my lawyer friend rang also asking for a copy to be faxed to
him, as he could make good use of it.
>From my counsel, Barrister Khalid Anwer: Its a great day in the annals
of our judiciary, one which opens a new dawn of judicial independence,
and opens the portals of political activity without fear of effective
victimisation.
>From senior advocate of the Supreme Court, friend Ijaz Batalvi, defender
of the underdog and liberator of the boisterous Sheikh Rashid: I have
read the order. Its very good judgment. Please congratulate the
Jadoogar on my behalf and remind him that this is just the beginning.
Our problems will not end here. The Lahore Bar has emphasised that it
will support the judiciary to the hilt.
Today is March 21, the spring equinox. Bahar aamad, gul-e-surkho, hazar
aamad....
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960325
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The fruits of arrogance : Islamabad diary
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Ayaz Amir
THERE is a strange malady which afflicts Pakistani rulers sooner or
later. Just when everything seems to be going fine for them they must do
something completely queer to tempt the fury of the gods.
It is not too long ago that Mian Nawaz Sharif, while enjoying a two-
thirds majority in the National Assembly, forfeited his prime
ministership when he entered into a wholly avoidable conflict with the
then President, Ghulam Ishaq Khan. If Nawaz Sharifs impetuosity had
been the result of considered policy, something might still have been
said for it. But all the evidence suggests that he and his advisers
stumbled into a confrontation whose consequences they probably lacked
the imagination to foresee. Nor was the doughty president much better
advised. In the twilight of his career he lived up to what Shakespeare
says in As You Like It that in the last stage of his life a man
returns to the helplessness of childhood.
The same malady has now struck the present rulers. Just when their
government looked secure, with the Muslim League trying to figure out a
strategy for itself and the MQM on the run in Karachi, they had to
manufacture a crisis with the superior judiciary.
Packing the high courts of Punjab and Sindh with appointees whose
political affiliations shone brighter than their legal ability was bad
enough. But what prompted the authorities to give a personal spin to a
judicial problem? When the petition filed by Rawalpindis maverick
lawyer, Mr Wahabul Khairi, questioning the manner in which the PPP
government had appointed high court judges was accepted for regular
hearing by the Chief Justice, Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, the government
was incensed. Here was a chief justice who had been elevated over the
heads of several colleagues senior to him. What is more, by his
appointment a precedent observed since the days of Justice Munir had
been broken. And yet this same chief justice was now exercising his mind
and acting in an independent manner. The inference was clear. The
government and its law officers expected the Chief Justice of Pakistan
to behave like an SHO and when, to the governments amazement but to
the delight of most Pakistanis interested in the supremacy of the
judiciary, he did not, the government was angry.
The governments two-pronged response was worthy of any neighbourhood
tough. First, a lawyer whose ties to the ruling party were no secret
filed a petition in the Peshawar High Court challenging the appointment
of Justice Sajjad Ali Shah as Chief Justice of Pakistan on the grounds
that he was not the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court. This
petition has still to be decided. Secondly, the Sindh government, which
in Pakistan today presents the most shining example that there is of
provincial autonomy, put the heat on Justice Sajjad Ali Shahs son-in-
law, an employee of the provincial government. His house in Hyderabad
was raided by the police and he was suspended from service. So much for
political tact and propriety.
The logic which led to this action can easily be reconstructed. In the
eyes of the government, Justice Sajjad Ali Shahs fault was not that he
was perceived as an adversary. Adversaries who cannot be bent and harsh
realities that cannot be changed the Prime Minister has learnt to
suffer, this being a hallmark of her hard-won pragmatism. Justice Sajjad
Ali Shah, however, was behaving independently when instead he should
have been showing his gratitude. Her government, therefore, tried to
behave with the Chief Justice of Pakistan exactly as it would have dealt
with one of its difficult minions: by sending the police after his son-
in-law which is a page out of the book of standard Pakistani criminology
where, if a chief suspect cannot be hauled up, his next of kin is.
While engaged in these tricks the government seemed to forget that it
had an important law case on its hands which if lost could lead to a
serious crisis. At first the Attorney-General, Qazi Jamil (who, apart
from any other sin, is being blamed for poisoning the Prime Ministers
ears and leading her down a destructive path) procrastinated, not
appearing before the Supreme Court on one pretext or another. When he
finally was left with no option but to open the government case, it
became painfully obvious that the Chief Law Officer of the land was ill-
prepared for what can safely be considered as the most important case of
his life.
But all this is water under the bridge. The important thing is that in
the Judges case the Supreme Court has spoken and in doing so has
administered a stinging reprimand (to put it no stronger than that) to a
government that was getting to be too sure of itself. In putting the
stamp of its interpretation on Articles 177 and 193 of the Constitution
articles which relate to the appointment of judges to the Supreme
Court and the High Courtsthe Supreme Court has altered the relationship
between the Executive and the Judiciary by making it well impossible for
the President to appoint judges to the superior courts in opposition to
the wishes of the concerned chief justices.
Furthermore, the powers hitherto exercised, and frequently misused, by
the executive authority to harass if not chastise members of the
superior judiciary, and also to breed a sense of insecurity in them,
have either been done away with completely or sharply curtailed. Thus
the practice of appointing acting chief justices has been circumscribed
by the condition that within 30 days a vacancy must be filled. No ad hoc
judges can be appointed against permanent vacancies in the Supreme
Court. A high court judge can be transferred to another high court in
the public interest but not as a punishment (which presumably means that
a transfer will be subject to the consent of the chief justice concerned
or the judge in question).
In deciding this the Supreme Court has declared that Article 209 of the
Constitution, which guarantees security of tenure being part of the
original 1973 Constitution, has precedence over Article 203-C which is a
legacy of military rule.
As has been commented upon widely, if this argument is accepted (as it
has to be since it is the highest court which is making it), the door is
flung open for striking down the other additions to the Constitution
made by General Zia-ul-Haq and later provided blanket cover by
Parliament through the passage of the Eighth Amendment. Conceivably,
this could re-open a host of constitutional issues hitherto considered
settled. The question, however, can legitimately be asked whether
overriding a constitutional provision is a legitimate exercise of
judicial interpretation or an encroachment into the field of law making
which lies outside the competence of the Supreme Court.
Of more immediate relevance to the government is the fate of its
judicial appointees who have come under a cloud because of this
judgment. Unless confirmed/regularised by permanent chief justices,
their appointments are void in terms of the Supreme Courts ruling.
Already the Karachi and Lahore bar associations, displaying an
enthusiasm which accords ill with the restraint usually associated with
the legal profession, have raised the banners of revolt against these
unfortunate souls. None of this can please the government which is still
trying to shape its response to a judgment which has been no less than a
judicial bombshell for it.
The critical question, therefore, is whether the rulers will have the
sense to moderate their reactions and make the best of a verdict
delivered by someone who has turned out to be their Becket or whether
they will make life difficult for themselves by locking horns with the
judiciary and giving the legal profession, which at least in this
country is no more level-headed than any other, a pretext to raise a
nation-wide rumpus? Another consideration could also be kept in mind.
For a polity still trying to find the golden mean, judicial intemperance
can be as unwholesome in its effects as executive excesses. If
governments, and this government especially, have been appointing
political favourites to judicial offices, the high priests of the
judiciary must doubly guard against the temptation of judicial
favouritism.
In any case, for the smooth functioning of the affairs of the federation
a civilised working relationship has to exist between the executive and
judicial branches. If it does not, what is supposed to be a system of
checks and balances can easily degenerate into mindless obstructionism.
In such an eventuality the public interest suffers. At this juncture,
therefore, it is not just the rulers and their law minions on trial but
also the superior lights of the judiciary.
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960327
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Do we know what the rule of law means?
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Editorial Column
WE are a nation of lawyers with more lawyers per square kilometre than
doctors and engineers. Yet, for all the respect that we have for the law
and its processes, we ought as well be living in the pre-legal ages.
Consider in this respect the multifarious responses to the Supreme Court
verdict in the Judges Case. Everyone, from the Prime Minister downwards,
is commenting upon it. The Prime Minister has said in So many words that
by this verdict the-judiciary had created, problems for itself. The
opposition is rubbing salt into the government's discomfiture by
impressing upon it the necessity of accepting the verdict. Mian Nawaz
Sharif has urged the President to save the dignity of the Supreme Court
by seeing to it that its judgment is implemented. From some quarters has
come the sensational disclosure that on the eve of the judgment there
were cries in the government toying with the idea of putting the judges
of the Supreme Court under arrest. On Monday excitement gripped newsmen
in Islamabad when they were informed that the Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court was about to have a Press conference. In the event he did
not which is no small cause for mercy. Meanwhile, bar associations
across the country have been issuing resolutions: some in support of the
verdict, others against it.
These are not happy developments. The Supreme Court is the highest court
in the land. Whether someone likes it or not, it has the last word in
judicial and constitutional matters. Since it is not an infallible
institution, it is quite possible for reservations to be expressed about
its judgements. The history of Pakistan is littered with judicial
verdicts, especially on constitutional matters, which have been
considered controversial. Yet, for better or worse, there is no
alternative to accepting them. Which is as it should be because not to
do so is to lower floodgates of uncertainty and judicial anarchy. Anyone
aggrieved by the Supreme Court decision can file a petition: for review.
It would also help if trigger-happy commentators were to wait for the
full judgment because What has been passed so far is just a short order
in which all the issues raised and disposed of in the judgment have not
been dealt with fully. But instead of following the judicious or the
legal path, everyone is rushing in with intemperate or half-baked
opinions. Time was when the law of contempt acted as a check on the
public expression of opinion about judicial matters. Now it seems as if
half the country is guilty of contempt of court.
Clearly, the verdict in the judges case has far-reaching implications
for the relationship between the executive and judicial branches. It is
also plain that the government has not welcomed this judgment for the
obvious reason that it puts strict curbs on the executive's ability to
exercise an unhealthy influence over senior judicial appointments and
transfers. But it should be equally obvious that all sides must exercise
restraint at this juncture and accept the judgment in the proper spirit.
The government certainly should muffle its displeasure because when
ministers and especially the Prime Minister pass adverse remarks against
a considered opinion of the Supreme Court, they neither serve their own
cause nor take the lead, as they should, in showing respect for the
judiciary. We cannot help observing at this point that if the Chief
Justice was about to address a Press conference, he was most ill-advised
in thinking along those lines. As a rule, CJs should keep themselves
aloof from such public exercises. Having given its verdict the Supreme
Court should be able to look at any adverse reaction with Olympian calm.
It hardly needs to be emphasised that if the government does not display
the maturity that it should, it could be inviting a political-cum-
judicial crisis with serious, if as yet indeterminate, consequences for
the present political system. If we look back at the history of
Pakistan, governments in this climate have usually been their own worst
enemies: stirring up troubles for themselves that with a bit of wisdom
could easily have been avoided and failing to read the obvious on the
wall. It would be tragic if this pattern is repeated.
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960328
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Our equations with the neighbours
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Mahdi Masud
IN SPITE of the increasing interaction in the modern world, in important
fields, economic, political and military, the solvency of a country's
foreign relations and particularly of its security interests, is
basically determined by its relations with its neighbours. Non-
neighbouring countries, however powerful, can never be a substitute for
meaningful cooperation with one's neighbours. A state can choose its
friends; it has to make do with its neighbours.
In the light of recent developments in our relations with our immediate
neighbours, it would be useful to have a quick survey of the developing
regional environment involving Iran, Afghanistan, India and Russia.
In the case of Iran, the cracks and fissures in Pakistan- Iran relations
continue to appear with disturbing regularity, not only in relation to
Afghanistan but with respect to other issues as well. The rapidly
sharpening divergence in the attitude of the two countries towards
Afghanistan has been highlighted by the recent accords between the
Iranian government and President Rabbani on the extension of Iranian
assistance to Kabul.
The radically different nature of Iran's and Pakistan's relations with
the US fosters mutual suspicions which are also fuelled by our close
relations with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states whose ties with Iran
are problematical.
The contradictions in Pak-Iran relations, posed by the above
divergences, are being exploited by India. The speed with which
relationships have changed in the region is illustrated by the contrast
between the close Indo-Iran relations as at present and the fact that
barely three years back Iran was described in the annual report of the
Indian ministry of external affairs as constituting a security threat to
India by virtue of Tehran's close relations with Pakistan.
Our continuing problems with the Kabul regime have been sharpened by
Rabbani's reaction to the proposed reconstruction of the Chaman-
Torghunday road by Pakistan as provided for in the tripartite agreement
between Pakistan, Afghanistan and Turkemenistan. The issue highlights
the constitutional anarchy prevailing in Afghanistan. A proposal for
reconstructing the route to Central Asian states through western
Afghanistan is seen as a violation of Kabul regime's claimed
jurisdiction over areas controlled by other Afghan groups such as the
Taliban.
Pakistan authorities should ensure that the resources and services
planned to be put into use for the project do not become a hostage to
the hazards of a battle-zone which western Afghanistan may soon become.
A proposal has been made that the road should be constructed by NGOs
rather than by government agencies.
The price we have paid for Afghanistan's freedom from the Soviet yoke
makes it all the more important that we re-establish our credentials
with all Afghan groups to enable Pakistan to play its due role in
restoring peace and normality and in the reconstruction of war-ravaged
Afghanistan.
While the US aid package extended to us as recompense for our front-line
role in the Afghan war was terminated soon after the war, the
destabilisation of Pakistan, particularly of Sindh (through arms and
drugs trafficking, heightened corruption and diversion of arms to crime
Mafias and ethnic groups) is a tragic legacy of our Afghan involvement
which would take decades to resolve.
Of all the countries that matter to us, the least movement is visible in
our relations with Russia in spite of the changed situation following
the end of the cold war. While in the altered context. India has been
able to establish close and mutually advantageous relations with both
the US and Russia, Pakistan's ties with the latter appear to be even
colder and more distant than what they were during the days of the cold
war, when we were allied to the US.
The latest development is Russia's reported offer to sell to India most
of its defence technology, comprising some one hundred and fifty weapons
systems, including the latest 300 mm multiple-launch rockets. This was
revealed by the deputy director-general of Russia's arms export agency.
This has also been confirmed by the Russian ambassador in Delhi. Earlier
in 1994, Russia had agreed to sell Mig-29s to India and upgrade Mig-21
planes.
While there is divergence in Moscow and Islamabad's attitude towards
Kabul, this is not an adequate explanation for Moscow's coldness, which
is a product apparently of New Delhi's pressure and of Russian anxiety
to preserve its vast stakes in India, in political, economic and
military fields, and not to allow these to be significantly eroded by
the new turn in Indo-US relations following the end of the cold war.
The dangers for Pakistan in strained or indifferent relationship with
all its neighbours, with the exception of China, are magnified by the
drift in our deteriorating relations with India in the context of the
ongoing freedom struggle in Kashmir. The imminent deployment of the
Pirthvi missiles and reported plans for another nuclear test by India
have heightened our security concerns.
Meanwhile, India is exploiting the interest being shown by the US for
Indian cooperation in the Indian ocean. Indian leverage with the US has
increased because of the continuing US problems with China in a number
of areas. US defence official. Richard Cheyney, has been quoted in the
Press as warning the Indians about a return to the euphoria of Hindi-
Cheeni bhai bhai days. The expedition of the Indian peace-keeping force
to Sri Lanka and Indian intervention in the Maldives had received
plaudits from the US.
In the case of China, India continues a double-faced policy. While
assurances of abiding peace and friendship are given to China, US
officials are told that China was central to India's nuclear planning.
The fact that while China could reach the plains of northern India with
bombers and short-range missile based in Tibet, India would need
nuclear-capable missiles with the range of 3200 kilometres to reach the
heartland of China, is given as the explanation for India's objective of
building a credible, missile-based deterrent vis-a-vis China.
However, India's hegemonistic designs over South Asia, which are the key
to India's military build-up, are betrayed by India's acts and
pronouncements. Brahma Chellany, one of India's leading scholars of
nuclear strategy and Professor of Strategic Research at Delhi's
Institute of Policy Research, wrote on February 26 1996, in The
International Herald Tribune: "The Sino-Pakistan umbilical cord would
snap only if India can stand up to China; as long as this does not
happen, the (Chinese) policy of building a countervailing power
(Pakistan), south of the Himalayas would develop firmer roots."
It is unfortunate that the prospects of election year uncertainty in
India are not an encouraging portent for a breakthrough in Indo-Pakistan
relations. Although at this stage, the outcome of the elections cannot
be assessed with any degree of certainty, the prospects are for a
coalition or a minority government supported by other groups to emerge.
South Asia is being rapidly left behind other regions in the economic
race. The governments of India and Pakistan owe it to their billion-plus
people to reach an early settlement of the Kashmir dispute which
epitomises the political conflict between the two countries and retards
the establishment of durable peace in the region. It is wrong to blame
in this connection the rigidity of public opinion alone. For if the
leaders and opinion makers in the two countries, who are expected to
mould and not merely reflect public opinion, were to show statesmanship,
the process of preparing the public mind for a fair settlement would be
set in motion.
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960322
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Verdict in the judges case
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Editorial Column
THE judgment delivered by the Supreme Court in the so-called judges case
in which recent appointments to the higher judiciary were questioned on
the grounds of being against the provisions of the Constitution is
likely to be as far-reaching in its implications as the decision of the
Supreme Court in 1993 when it held the dismissal of the National
Assembly to be invalid. What is more, the present decision is likely to
be as discomfiting for this government as the one in 1993 was for
President Ghulam Ishaq Khan.
The main burden of this case rested upon an interpretation of Articles
177 and 193 of the Constitution. These articles state that appointments
to the superior judiciary that is, to the Supreme Court and the four
high courtsare to be made by the President of Pakistan after
consultation" with the chief justices concerned. The principal question
posed on this case was as to what was the nature of the consultation
envisaged by the Constitution: a formality which the government had to
observe or something more substantial? In words that leaves little room
for doubt, the Supreme Court has held that "(the) words 'after
consultation'... connote that the consultation should be effective,
meaningful, purposive, consensus-oriented, leaving no room for complaint
of arbitrariness or unfair play. The opinion of the Chief Justice of
Pakistan and the Chief Justice of a high court as to the fitness and
suitability of a candidate for judgeship is entitled to be accepted in
the absence of very sound reasons to be recorded by the
President/Executive." This part of the order would suggest that the last
word in the matter of senior judicial appointments still remains with
the President who may differ with a chief justice for "very sound
reasons". The very next part of the order, however, seems to strike this
implication down when it says: "That if the President /Executive
appoints a candidate found to be unfit and unsuitable for Judgeship by
the Chief Justice of the high court concerned, it will not be a proper
exercise of power under the relevant article of the Constitution." Thus
what the order seems to leave open at one place is slammed shut in the
next. Leaving the appointment of the Chief Justice of Pakistan aside (a
question which the order specifically says it is not going into), all
other appointments to the superior judiciary must bear the stamp of
"consultation" as just defined by the Supreme Court if they are not to
be invalid.
The Supreme Court has also frowned upon the practice of appointing
'acting' chief justices in the high courts and ad hoc judges both at the
a ex level and in the provinces. Permanent vacancies in the offices of
chief justice and judges "should be filled in immediately, and not later
than 30 days..." Furthermore, no ad-hoc judge can be appointed in the
Supreme Court while permanent vacancies exist. In-the high courts the
senior-most judge should normally be appointed chief justice barring
sound reasons to be recorded by the President. Transfers of chief
justices and other judges to the Federal Shariat Court without the
consent of the persons affected have-been held to be violative of the
Constitution. A transfer of a judge from one high court to another "can
only be made in the public interest and not as a punishment."
The thrust of this order is thus quite clear. At one stroke it does away
with the discretion of the executive authority in the matter of
appointing judges to the superior judiciary. It also removes the sword
of Damocles hanging over judges in the shape of the power to transfer
them arbitrarily from one court to another and especially to the Federal
Shariat Court which more than anything else has been the dumping ground
of undesirable judges. The independence of the judiciary which over the
years has been steadily eroded by executive arbitrariness has thus been
upheld. If judges cannot be masters in their own house, as they
manifestly have not been for the greater part of Pakistan's history, how
are they to dispense justice without fear or favour? This judgment,
therefore, is a significant decision which will rank among the other
memorable judgements of the superior judiciary in this country.
To say as much, however, should not mean closing one's eyes to a danger
lurking in the opposite direction. While executive meddling in the
affairs of the judiciary has circumscribed judicial independence and
also given the judiciary a bad name and an image of turning with the
wind, the strengthening of judicial independence should not mean
judicial arbitrariness in the form of unnecessary clashes with the
executive. If the exercise of power has been arbitrary in this country,
it should not be irrelevant to recall that the superior judiciary has
gone along with and even sanctified the more memorable constitutional
deviations in the nation's history. If this judgment gives the judiciary
greater security, with this should come a greater graciousness and a
less arbitrary recourse on the part of the judiciary to the law of
contempt which in this country has often been used to stifle justified
criticism that has been warranted either by the behaviour of individual
judges or acts of the judiciary as a whole.
The most important thing at this juncture, however, is for the
government to accept this judgment in the right-spirit. Had the
government's actions been governed by a modicum of wisdom. there
probably would have been no occasion for such a petition and such a
judgment. But some recent appointments to the superior judiciary had
been carried out with so scant a regard for competence and judicial
ability that a storm of criticism had arisen. What is immediately at
stake is the future of the judges whose tenures were confirmed by the
government with ill-concealed haste right on the eve of the Supreme
Court judgment. The government's first reaction to this judgment which
was given forth by the state-controlled APP was unfortunate as it seemed
to give the impression that the government was questioning this
judgment. Better sense should prevail. Even if some judges whose
appointments may have been dictated by political considerations have to
be sacrificed as a result of the Supreme Court verdict, the government
should not hesitate to do this.
What it must avoid at all costs is a needless conflict with the
judiciary. What the Supreme Court has done is to reaffirm a basic truth:
that with executive interference and meddling, the notion of an
independent judiciary is violated. Just as after the 1993 decision of
the Supreme Court any future president will think twice before
dismissing the National Assembly, governments will now have to consider
hard before interfering with the judiciary. This is a development to be
welcomed as long as judicial assertion is contained within the bounds
prescribed by the Constitution. The judiciary is the guarantor and
interpreter of the Constitution. By remaining true to this function it
can strengthen the state by promoting a harmonious relationship among
the three organs of the state.
960323
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World Cup 96 in statistics
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Mohammad Shoaib Ahmed
In the 35 matches of the sixth World Cup, the twelve participating
countries aggregated 15,180 runs off 3,243.2 overs for the loss of 472
wickets - an overall average of 4.68 runs per over and 32.16 runs per
wickets.
SCORING PATTERN
Runs Overs Wkts Runs Runs
Scored faced lost per per
over wkt
Sri Lanka 1,631 272.4 30 5.98 54.36
Australia 1,686 333.4 44 5.05 38.31
India 1,544 313.4 42 4.92 36.76
West Indies 1,119 263.1 48 4.25 23.31
Pakistan 1,284 245.2 26 5.23 49.38
South Africa 1,545 281.2 35 5.49 44.14
New Zealand 1,520 294.3 49 5.16 31.02
England 1,283 279.3 42 4.59 30.54
Zimbabwe 877 237.3 40 3.69 21.92
Kenya 960 249.1 40 3.85 24.00
UAE 784 222.5 39 3.52 20.12
Holland 947 250.0 37 3.78 25.59
The results summary of these 35 matches.
Played Won Lost Success%age
Sri Lanka 6 6 - 100.00
South Africa 6 5 1 83.33
Australia 7 5 2 71.42
Pakistan 6 4 2 66.66
India 7 4 3 57.14
New Zealand 6 3 3 50.00
West Indies 6 3 3 50.00
England 6 2 4 33.33
Kenya 5 1 4 20.00
Zimbabwe 5 1 4 20.00
UAE 5 1 4 20.00
Holland 5 - 5 -----
Leading Batsmen
(Qualification: 200 or more runs)
M I NO Runs Hs Ave 100s 50s
A. Ranatunga (SL) 6 6 4 241 75* 120.50 - 1
P.A. de Silva (SL) 6 6 1 448 145 89.60 2 1
S.R. Tendulkar (Ind) 7 7 1 523 137 87.16 2 3
Saeed Anwar (Pak) 6 6 2 329 83* 82.25 - 3
M.E. Waugh (Aus) 7 7 1 484 130 80.66 3 1
G. Kirsten (SA) 6 6 1 391 188* 78.20 1 1
A.C. Hudson (SA) 4 4 - 275 161 68.75 1 1
D.J. Cullinan (SA) 6 6 2 255 69 63.75 - 2
G.P. Thorpe (Eng) 6 6 2 254 89 63.50 - 2
R.B. Richardson (WI) 6 6 2 236 93* 59.00 - 1
M.J. Cronje (SA) 6 6 1 276 78 55.20 - 2
B.C. Lara (WI) 6 6 1 269 111 53.80 1 1
G.A. Nick (Eng) 5 5 1 212 104* 53.00 1 1
A.P. Gurusinha (SL) 6 6 - 307 87 51.16 - 3
S.G. Law (Aus) 7 6 2 204 72 51.00 - 1
Aamer Sohail (Pak) 6 6 - 272 111 45.33 1 2
S.R. Waugh (Aus) 7 7 2 226 82 45.20 - 3
S.T. Jayasuriya (SL) 5 5 - 221 82 44.20 - 2
S. Chanderpaul (WI) 6 6 - 211 80 35.16 - 2
R.T. Ponting (Aus) 7 7 - 229 102 32.71 1 -
Best for other countries
S. Tikolo (Ken) 5 5 - 196 96 39.20 - 2
S.P. Fleming (NZ) 6 6 - 193 66 32.16 - 1
K.J.Noortwijk (Hol) 5 5 1 168 64 42.00 - 1
A.G. Waller (Zim) 5 5 - 159 67 31.80 - 1
Saleem Raza (UAE) 4 4 - 137 84 34.25 - 1
Leading Bowlers
(Qualification: 8 or more wickets)
M Overs Mdns Runs Wkts Ave Best 4W
A.A. Donald (SA) 5 34 0 128 8 15.75 3-21 -
P.A. Strang (Zim) 5 42.1 4 192 12 16.00 5-21 2
C.E.L. Ambrose (WI) 6 56.3 11 170 10 17.00 3-28 -
R.A. Harper (WI) 6 58 6 219 12 18.25 4-47 1
D.W. Fleming (Aus) 6 45.2 3 221 12 18.41 5-36 1
A.R. Kumble (Ind) 7 69 3 281 15 18.73 3-28 -
Waqar Younus (Pak) 6 54 3 253 13 19.46 4-26 1
Rajab Ali (Ken) 5 36.2 3 176 9 19.55 3-17 -
S.L. Venkatapathy
Raju (Ind) 4 40 4 158 8 19.75 3-30 -
S.K. Warne (Aus) 7 68.3 3 263 12 21.91 4-34 2
Mushtaq Ahmed (Pak) 6 57 2 238 10 23.80 3-16 -
D.G. Cork (Eng) 5 48 2 216 8 27.00 2/33 -
J. Srinath (Ind) 7 65.4 3 293 8 36.62 3/34 -
B.K. Venkatesh
Prasad (Ind) 7 65 1 312 8 39.00 3/45 -
Best for other countries
M. Muralitharan (SL)6 57.1 3 216 7 30.85 2-37 -
Shaukat
Dukanwala(UAE) 5 33 1 153 6 25.50 5-29 1
D.J. Nash (NZ) 4 35 4 153 6 25.50 3-26 -
S.W. Lubbers (Hol) 4 36 0 187 5 37.40 3-48 -
Leading Fielders: 8-A.R.Kumble(Ind), 5-C.L.Cairns, A.R.R.Cambell(Zim),
G.P.Thorpe(Eng), S.T.Jaya Suriya(SL), 4-P.A.de Silva(SL), S.Tikolo
(Ken), B.M.McMillan(SA), B.Zuiderent(Hol)
Leading Wicketkeepers: 12 dismissals-I.A.Healy(Aus), 9-Rashid Latif
(Pak), 8-S.J.Palframan(SA), 9 J.C.Russel(Eng), 7-N.R.Mongia(Ind), 5-R.S.
Kaluwitharana(SL), J.C.Adams(WI), C.O.Browne(WI).
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960325
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Jansher eliminated from Super Series final
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LONDON, March 23: Jansher Khan, whose two-year unbeaten run on the PSA
world circuit came to an end. Khan, who lost to Englands Del Harris
his first loss since losing to Scotlands Peter Nicol in February 1994
in the Leekes Classic was knocked out of the finals when Harris went
on to gain his third successive victory.
Harris had needed five games to bring down the great Pakistani but now
required only three to overcome Mark Chaloner, a fellow member of
Englands world title winning squad in Cairo four months ago.
Harris trailed 5-8 in the third game and Chaloner had two chances to
take it to a fourth, but the world number six attacked at great pace
with drops, drives and volleys and defended almost as acrobatically as
he had against Jansher and came out the winner by 9-1, 9-6, 1O-8.
That earned Harris top place in the group and a contest in the Super
Series final against the world number three Brett Martin.
Jansher has been left to battle for third place in a match against the
world number two Rodney Eyles, an encounter he earned by overcoming the
British champion from Scotland Peter Nicol 9-7, 1O-8, 9-3.
Dawn page