PAKISTAN is in a state of turmoil as two of its fundamental pillars -- the judiciary and the executive -- seem to be involved in a confrontation. A constitution is a set of fundamental principles according to which a state is governed. The present impasse is regarding the constitution’s fundamental rights and the immunity of the president.

No constitution can be called democratic without the provision of fundamental rights: a guarantee for the people’s liberty. The 1973 Constitution has a list of fundamental rights. It has been clarified that any law that negates these fundamental rights will be considered null and void.

Article 25 (one of the fundamental rights) of the constitution states that all citizens are equal before the law and are entitled to equal protection of law. Article 248 of the constitution has made an exception to article 25.

Article 248 (2) states that no criminal proceedings whatsoever shall be instituted or continued against the president or a governor in any court during his term of office; 248(3) no process for the arrest or imprisonment of the president or a governor shall issue from any court during his term of office; 248 (4) no civil proceedings in which relief is claimed against the president or a governor shall be instituted during his term of office in respect of anything done by or not done by him …The exception made to article 25 is a blatant negation of the fundamental rights. The Supreme Court cannot strike down the presidential immunity as laid down in article 248 because the apex court has the right to interpret and not amend the constitution.

If the Supreme Court declared the presidential immunity null and void , it would then be alleged that since the present government opposed the restoration of some members of the Supreme Court , it is waging a vendetta against the current government.

No Sharia law, no citizen and no modern constitution would uphold such an exception as made in the fundamental rights through article 248 of the constitution.

It is one’s innocent and patriotic wish that the Supreme Court bring to light the anomalies of the constitution regarding the presidential immunity and the fundamental rights and then send it to parliament to consider amendments.

TAHIR ZAMAN Karachi