Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial said on Friday that the Supreme Court would not “sit idle” on its order on holding elections in Punjab on May 14 if the talks between the government and the PTI failed.

He passed these remarks as the top court resumed hearing a petition pertaining to one-day elections following three-day negotiations between the federal coalition and the opposition to agree on a specific date for nationwide polls.

After the negotiations came to an end on Tuesday, the PTI submitted a report to the court stating that no resolution was reached and requested that the court enforce its April 4 order regarding elections in Punjab.

In the last hearing on April 27, the three-member Supreme Court bench comprising CJP Bandial, Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Munib Akhtar — also made it clear to the negotiating parties that its April 4 order on Punjab Assembly elections had remained unchanged.

During today’s proceedings, the chief justice said that the government and the PTI could continue the negotiations “if both the parties were interested”, but at the same time expressed displeasure over their “lack of interest” in a substantial dialogue.

He also said that the court only had to see if both sides could agree on a date for elections, adding that the SC’s responsibility was to uphold the law and Constitution.

After conducting a hearing that lasted nearly two hours, the proceeding was adjourned, with the CJP saying that an appropriate order will be issued.

The hearing

Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Awan, PPP lawyer Farooq H. Naek, PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi, PML-N’s Khawaja Saad Rafique and others were present as the proceeding commenced today.

At the outset of the hearing, the PPP counsel read out loud the coalition government’s report on talks with the opposition — which was submitted earlier today — in court. In its reply, the government stated that a “major breakthrough” was achieved during the dialogue.

The CJP noted that the response had been signed by the finance minister, emphasising the importance of political leadership in resolving political issues. Additionally, he pressed on the significance of ongoing discussions with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

“The matter in court is constitutional, not political,” the top judge remarked, stressing that the SC had left political matters to political parties.

He then asked why the approval of the IMF agreement and trade policy were important, to which Naek replied: “Getting the IMF loan is key for the budget.”

The PPP lawyer explained that without the assemblies it would be impossible to approve the budget. “We wouldn’t be in this crisis if the assemblies of Punjab and KP were not dissolved.”

“Because of this crisis, a lot of the court’s time is also being wasted,” he said, adding that the issue at hand would be resolved if an understanding was reached between the government and the opposition.

“Will the IMF loan be used for reserves or the repayment of debts?” Justice Bandial asked here, to which Naek responded that the answer to this question could only be given by the finance minister.

The CJP also inquired if the budget was formulated under the guidelines of the IMF package, referring to news reports that stated the tranche would only be sanctioned if friendly countries provide a loan to Pakistan.

He stressed that the Constitution mandated holding polls within 90 days of the dissolution of assemblies, emphasising that the court had already issued a verdict regarding holding polls within 90 days.

CJP Bandial further observed that the court would not sit idle on its verdict for the May 14 polls if negotiations between the political parties failed.

He also highlighted that the Constitution binds the court to make sure that its verdict was implemented. “The court’s responsibility is to uphold the law.”

Referring to unattributed statements alleging that courts did not respect the Constitution in the past, the CJP said that the court refrained from commenting on such statements as a “mark of respect”.

He maintained that decisions made in anger are often not the correct ones, adding: “Therefore, we do not get angry.”

The chief justice then asked PPP’s Naek to draw comparisons between discussions held in court and those that occur in the Parliament, noting the importance of the discussion. “See the level of discussion being held here,” he remarked.

Naek contended that the court must review the issue of holding polls within 90 days and insisted on the significance of caretaker governments in ensuring free and fair elections.

He further emphasised that no one would accept elections until the elected government was in place. At that, the CJP referred to the Feb 23 matter when the court had taken a suo motu notice. He stated that the government had not taken constitutional proceedings seriously.

“You remained preoccupied with the debate surrounding the four-three [verdict],” the CJP told the PPP counsel.

The top judge said Justice Athar Minallah had raised the point of the dissolution of assemblies, however, the government showed no interest. “Even in a discussion today, no one is talking about the law or the Constitution.”

He noted that the seriousness of the government was such that it had not filed a review appeal — on the SC’s verdict. “The government doesn’t want to talk about law but wants to do politics.”

Justice Bandial stated that the court won’t respond to politics, saying that he had taken the oath to protect the Constitution.

“Along with economic, political, societal and security, there is also a constitutional crisis [in the country],” he said. “Eight people embraced martyrdom yesterday.

“The government and the opposition will have to become serious,” he observed. “Leave the matter on the political parties … should the court not ensure implementation of the law? Should we turn a blind eye to the public’s interest?

“The government is bound to follow the court’s orders,” Justice Bandial maintained. “The court is showing restraint but this should not be considered as our weakness.”

CJP also said that the court won’t shy away from sacrifices for ensuring the implementation of the law. “The nation’s jawans have given sacrifices and we are ready to do the same.”

At that, Barrister Ali Zafar stated that the PTI had agreed on holding elections across the country on the same day, but the only condition was that assemblies should be dissolved by May 14. “Our second condition is that polls should be held by the second week of July.”

The third condition, the lawyer went on, was that the delay in elections should be legalised through a constitutional amendment. Barrister Zafar also highlighted that May 14 was only a few days away but polls funds had not been released yet.

“Due to the doctrine of necessity, the election cannot be delayed any further,” he added.

Subsequently, PML-N’s Khawaja Saad Rafique came to the rostrum.

The Railways minister said he was not a lawyer and was not aware of the etiquette of speaking in court. “But I will speak the truth, nothing but the truth.”

Rafique said there was deep mistrust between institutions and political parties.

The PML-N leader expressed his dissatisfaction with the judiciary, claiming that it had been “unfair to us since 2017”. However, he clarified that his party did not seek conflict among institutions, especially when the basic needs of the people remain unmet.

He also emphasised the importance of transparency in the 90-day demand, as mandated by the Constitution. He warned that in the past, the country had faced disintegration due to the failure to accept election results, pointing out the need for fair and democratic processes.

The minister called for simultaneous elections across the country, warning of impending destruction if elections are held in just one province.

Rafique also informed the court that the assemblies in Sindh and Balochistan were very sensitive, making it difficult to dissolve both assemblies prematurely just for Punjab. He called it an arduous task.

The minister expressed gratitude towards the PTI for engaging in talks “with an open heart” and recommended that the talks should continue.

He further explained that complications arise when the court is dragged into political affairs, to which the CJP replied that the judiciary was sitting with hands tied because the circumstances were not conducive.

The judge pointed out that elections had taken place even during times of major wars. “Elections took place even during the earthquake in Turkey.”

“It seems from your words that you do not want to violate the Constitution,” he told Rafique.

Justice Bandial noted that the remarks made about Punjab were political in nature, but they were not presented in writing to the court. “Only the matters of funds and security were discussed in front of the court.”

He expressed that at the very least, the funds for the elections could have been released and advised that actions must be taken to demonstrate good governance.

The chief justice stated that the court was given a briefing on security and then asked if there was any guarantee that the security situation would improve by October 8. He said that only assumptions were being made regarding the date of the election.

Presenting his arguments, PTI’s Qureshi said that the government — in its report — did not say anything new and had instead repeated its previous stance.

“We have tried our best to make the negotiations fruitful,” he said. “But the government benches said things that were equivalent to violating the court’s orders.”

Qureshi stated that the PTI report submitted in court yesterday included the signatures of all the members of its negotiation team, while the government’s response only included Ishaq Dar’s signatures.

At that, the CJP said that the government’s report was submitted early morning today but the court still conducted a hearing on it.

“The government and the PTI have no interest in holding talks,” Justice Bandial remarked. “The court only has to see if both the sides have agreed on a date [for polls].”

He then asked if a decision could be reached within two to three days.

Meanwhile, Qureshi contended that the coalition had sought more time saying that it comprised of 12 parties. “But, Imran Khan and everyone else criticised why a gap of three days was given,” he revealed.

Qureshi went on to say that there was also no progress on the IMF deal. However, the CJP stated here that the matter should not be discussed in court.

The country, the PTI leader continued, was being pushed towards constitutional crisis and called on the court to look into his party’s stance.

“We have read your stance,” the chief justice replied, adding that proceedings could continue in the case regarding holding elections in Punjab on May 14. He also said that the PTI-government negotiations could again be held if both parties were interested.

Here, Qureshi argued that the government was not showing any flexibility, recalling that the PTI had “sacrificed” its governments in Punjab and KP. “There is always an environment for negotiations,” he continued, claiming that the government was just trying to waste time.

Subsequently, CJP Bandial said that the court would issue an appropriate order, adding that the political parties could continue with the negotiations if they were interested.

The hearing was then adjourned.

PTI decries govt’s ‘arrogant’ attitude

Meanwhile, the PTI has termed the ruling coalition “arrogant and defiant”, saying that its attitude towards the talks was non-serious and it was “making excuses to delay the elections”.

Speaking to media outside the SC today, Qureshi said: “They (the coalition government) are arrogant and defiant. They want to undermine the Constitution of Pakistan and ridicule the highest forum of justice in this country, which is the Supreme Court.”

Qureshi said the PTI had shown “complete flexibility” by agreeing to three demands of the coalition government — holding polls on the same day, holding them under the current caretaker setup and all parties accepting the poll results.

The PTI leader added that his party had also suggested ways to overcome any “legal hurdles” that would arise and was ready for a one-time constitutional amendment if need be.

Qureshi decried that the government was calling the PTI to the table one side, but at the same time was arresting the party’s workers.

He called on those “who wanted to become the protectors of the Constitution” to come out in protest on Saturday at 5:30pm.

On the other hand, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry welcomed the government’s proposal to dissolve the national and provincial assemblies early, saying that it was a “step in the right direction”.

“If a comprise is reached on the date for the dissolution of assemblies and the consensus is achieved on bringing impartial caretaker governments, then this will be an important step in ending this crisis,” he tweeted.

Talks led to ‘major breakthrough’, govt tells SC

In the latest development, the federal government also submitted a report to the top court today about the outcome of the talks three days after the PTI furnished its report to the apex court, seeking the implementation of the SC’s order on holding elections in Punjab on May 14 “in letter and spirit”.

The PTI and the federal coalition concluded the make-or-break round of the much-awaited negotiations on polls on May 2. The talks began on the top court’s advice last week.

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar submitted the report through the attorney general.

In the reply filed by the government, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, it quoted the PTI’s committee acknowledging “the gravity of economic challenges being faced by Pakistan and agreed to negotiate on holding general elections to the National and all provincial assemblies on the same date”.

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“The coalition partners also showed flexibility to reach a political settlement and considered dissolving the National and two provincial assemblies before the end of their constitutionally mandated terms,” the reply said.

It added that negotiations between both committees consequently led to a “major breakthrough” to end the political impasse, resulting in an understanding on some points including consensus that the general elections should be held on the same date.

The reply also added that the committees further agreed that the caretaker governments should be in place at both the federal and provincial levels for holding general elections “justly, fairly and in accordance with law and to provide level playing field to the leadership of all political parties to actively participate in the electoral process”.

“There is, however, no agreement on date of dissolution of the National and Provincial Assemblies of Sindh and Balochistan, and both committees had agreed on May 2 to resume negotiations after getting clearance from their respective leadership,” according to the minister.

The reply concluded that: “As is evident from the foregoing, significant progress has been made since the dialogue process began. The coalition partners believe that political issues can best be resolved through dialogue and are ready to resume the same in the larger national interest.”

Election impasse

Last month, the Supreme Court — while hearing a PTI petition — had directed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to hold general elections to the Punjab Assembly on May 14. However, the government had rejected the apex court’s orders.

After repeated back and forth last week, the Supreme Court on April 20 afforded a temporary respite to the country’s main political parties, giving them time till April 26 to develop a consensus on the date for elections to the provincial and national assemblies, so they could be held simultaneously across the country.

However, on April 26, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reiterated that simultaneous elections will take place in Octo­ber or November after the current National Asse­mbly completed its term on August 13, whereas parliament will have the final say regarding the initiation of talks with the opposition.

The government wanted to talk to the PTI, he had said, adding that there was an overwhelming opinion that the doors of dialogue should not be closed, but its format was yet to be decided. “The decision [regarding talks] has to be taken by parliament, not you or me,” he added.

Subsequently, Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani had formed a committee with four members each from both the ruling coalition and the opposition for dialogue.

Dar, former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, PML-N’s Khawaja Saad Rafique, Azam Nazeer Tarar and Sardar Ayaz Sadiq along with PPP’s Syed Naveed Qamar represented the government in the negotiations. Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s Kishwar Zehra and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid’s Tariq Bashir Cheema were also included in the government’s negotiating team.

Meanwhile, the opposition delegation consisted of the party’s Vice Chairman Qureshi, Senior Vice President Fawad Chaudhry, and Senator Ali Zafar.