This update is meant to identify key developments during the month on Performance of Democratic Institutions in Pakistan with selected high-profile international developments included occasionally.

1. Deepening divisions in the SC and Punjab Assembly Elections
2. Passage of the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Bill 2023
3. Female acting CJ of the PHC
4. ECP undertaking for holding ICT LG election
5. Investigation underway against former DG ISI: Interior Minister
6. Former General appointed as NAB Chair
7. LHC strikes down the offence of sedition
8. Former COAS denies Interviews with Journalists
9. Arrest and Bail of PTI Workers
10. New Governor of Balochistan
11. PAC directs AG to audit SC Accounts
12. No effort being made to meet COAS: Imran Khan
13. There were errors in judgments: Justice (Retd.) Saqib Nisar
14. ECP suspends election schedule for Bye-Elections on 37 NA Seats
15. Public details of foreign gifts
16. Withdrawal of Reference against Justice Isa
17. Piling up Cases against Mr. Imran Khan
18. LHC stops handover of land to Army
19. COAS meets business community
20. Terrorist Attacks
21. Speaker National Assembly meets Foreign Dignitaries
22. Chairman Senate meets Foreign Dignitaries
23. Interactions of COAS with Foreign Dignitaries
24. Prime Minister’s Interactions with COAS

Deepening divisions in the SC and Punjab Assembly Elections

On March 22, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) postponed the Punjab Assembly elections, earlier scheduled for April 30, to October 8, 2023 citing deteriorating security situation in the country. Invoking its powers under Constitution’s Article 218(3) with Section 58 and Section 8(c) of the Elections Act, 2017, the ECP announced that the earlier schedule of the election is withdrawn and “fresh schedule will be issued in due course of time with the poll date on October 8.” The order included in writing the ECP’s reasons for doing so. ^[1]

Earlier, on March 1, the Supreme Court, in a suo motu notice, had held in a 3-2 verdict that elections to the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assemblies should be held within 90 days. Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Munib Akhtar and Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar were in support while Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail and Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah dissented with the verdict.^[2]

The strength of the bench had become reduced on February 27 from 9 judges to 5 owing to dissent on conducting suo motu proceedings on the issue. ^[3] While Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi had recused themselves from the bench owing to demand from the PDM^[4] the CJP had chosen to also take out Justice Yahya Afridi and Justice Athar Minallah from the bench.

After the March 1 SC verdict, the federal government had maintained that the verdict was in fact a 4-3 majority decision in its favour, and not a 3-2 verdict and that there was no need to move any review petition before the Supreme Court.^[5]

The ECP order was challenged by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on March 25 and the CJP constituted a five-judge Supreme Court bench including Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan (who had recused from the earlier bench on the subject alongside Justice Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi on request of the PDM parties), Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Aminuddin Khan and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail on March 27. ^[6]

However, on March 27, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail in their detailed dissenting notes on March 1 verdict of the SC wrote that agreeing with the dissenting notes of Justice Afridi and Justice Minallah, they dismiss the suo motu proceedings thus making the earlier March 1 verdict of 3-2 to actually be 4-3 against the suo-motu proceedings. The two judges also wrote that since the issue of date of Provincial Assembly elections was pending before the High Courts, the SC did not have the power to “make an order of the nature mentioned in Article 199 of the Constitution against a judicial order of a high court, directly or indirectly.” The dissenting note also called in question the CJP’s power to take up suo motu under Article 184(3) of the Constitution and said this power was “‘discretionary’ ‘special’ and ‘extraordinary’ and is to be exercised ‘with circumspection’ only in ‘exceptional cases’ of public importance relating to enforcement of fundamental rights that are considered ‘fit’ for being dealt with under this jurisdiction by the court.” They also called for revisiting “the power of ‘one-man show’ enjoyed by the office of the CJP.” ^[7]

On March 30, a member of the bench constituted by the CJP, Justice Aminuddin Khan, recused himself from hearing the PTI’s petition against the ECP decision leading to the dissolution of the bench. In a judgement announced a day earlier in another suo motu case related to the award of an additional 20 marks to candidates for memorising the Holy Quran by heart to get an MBBS or BDS degree, Justice Aminuddin Khan and Justice Qazi Faez Isa had ruled that Constitution did not grant unilateral and arbitrary power to the CJP to make special benches and said that all hearings based on suo motu notices and cases of constitutional significance under Article 184(3) should be postponed until they are legislated upon.^[8]

In an unusual move, the order issued by Justice Isa and Justice Khan was disregarded through a circular issued by registrar of the Supreme Court on March 31. The circular said that the observations made by Justice Isa and Justice Khan “travel beyond” the case that was before them and that the observation made in the judgement issued by Justice Isa and Justice Khan should be disregarded. ^[9]

On March 31, another member of the bench, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, also recused himself from the bench. He said that he received a written order after the conclusion of the hearing on March 30 which was not dictated in open court and in which he was not consulted where the three judges (Umar Ata Bandial, CJ, Ijaz ul Ahsan and Munib Akhtar, JJ.) disagreed with observations made on the present petition [by Justice Isa and Khan]. Not only, he wrote, that the three members of the bench chose not to consult him in preparing the written order, his earlier observations on the petition on maintainability of this suo motu proceedings, which were also supported by Justices Afridi, Minallah and Shah, have not been resolved or paid any heed to by this Court despite additional calls by the AGP, legal fraternity, and counsel for political parties. He also wrote that the issue before the Court is of serious constitutional nature which requires “to be interpreted and resolved on the basis of collective wisdom through a Full Court” for which he will be available.^[10]

Justice Mandokhail’s recusal prompted the CJP to reconstitute the bench including himself, Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan and Justice Munib Akhtar to proceed with the PTI petition. In the face of unprecedented and apparent divisions in the Supreme Court displaying that the CJP had lost control of the Court, the CJP reportedly became emotional while presiding the hearing and insisted that judges were united despite differences. ^[11]

CJP Justice Bandial also rejected the request by the Attorney General for the formation of a full court by saying that the court had conducted proceedings into the case for three complete days and that the inclusion of new judges to the bench will further waste time. “It will take time for the new judges to understand the case,” he said. ^[12]

On the side-lines of the judicial saga, a terse exchange of communication also took place between the Prime Minister (PM) and the President where the PM advised the President to act in accordance with the advice of the Cabinet or the Prime Minister under clause (1) of Article 48 in the exercise of his functions. The President had written to the PM to assist in holding elections in the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in accordance with orders from the Supreme Court. In response, the PM accused the President of violating his constitutional oath, actively working to undermine the government and for not raising concerns about the ‘mala fide’ dissolution of the two Provincial Assemblies. ^[13]

Passage of the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Bill 2023

On March 28, the Federal Cabinet approved a Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Bill 2023 making major changes in the powers of the CJP relating to suo motu alongside other significant reforms. The bill was passed by the National Assembly on March 29 and by the Senate on March 30.^[14]

The bill provides a governing law under Article 191 of the Constitution which states that subject to the Constitution and the law, the SC may make rules regulating the practice and procedure of the SC.

The bill states that a committee comprising the CJP and two senior most judges would constitute each bench that would hear and dispose of every cause, appeal or matter before the SC. Decisions in the committee will be taken by majority. Similarly, the same committee would decide whether to take up suo motu notice under clause (3) of Article 184 of the Constitution and if convinced that the issue is indeed of public importance with reference to enforcement of any of the fundamental rights conferred by Chapter I of Part ll of the Constitution, the committee would constitute three-member bench to adjudicate on the suo motu.

The same committee comprising the CJP and two senior most judges has been given the right to constitute a bench to decide interpretation of any constitutional provision before the SC.

The Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Bill 2023 has also granted the much needed and hitherto unavailable legal right of appeal to individuals tried under clause (3) of Article 184 of the Constitution (suo motu) binding the SC to fix the hearing of such an appeal within 14 days. The clause also allows any aggrieved person sentenced before the passage of this law under Article 184(3) the right of appeal which must be filed within 30 days of the passage of the law of the commencement of this Act.

The bill also grants any aggrieved the right to appoint counsel of choice in a review of a judgement by the SC under Article 188 of the Constitution while it also binds the SC to fix a hearing within 14 days where an application pleads urgency or seeks interim relief through an appeal, cause or matter. ^[15]

Female acting CJ of the PHC

Justice Musarrat Hilali has become the first female acting Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court (PHC) following her appointment by the President on March 29, 2023. She will serve as acting chief justice from April 1, 2023 until the appointment of a regular chief justice on the recommendation of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP). ^[16]

ECP undertaking for holding ICT LG election

On March 2, the ECP gave an undertaking to the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to hold local government elections in Islamabad within four months.

The bench comprising the IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz barred the government from increasing the number of union councils (UCs) after the announcement of the election schedule. The ECP has submitted a report before the IHC, stating that the Commission would conduct election in Islamabad’s 125 UCs in 120 days after completing the delimitation and other formalities.^[17]

Investigation underway against former DG ISI: Interior Minister

On March 08, Federal Minister for Interior Rana Sanaullah announced that a probe was underway against former DG ISI, Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Faiz Hamid and his brother over allegations of corruption and accumulating assets beyond means.

Earlier PML-N’s Chief Organizer Ms. Maryam Nawaz Sharif had also called for court martial of for former DG ISI over his alleged role in bringing down the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. ^[18]

In a tweet, anchor and journalist Mr. Kamran Khan wrote that Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Faiz Hamid had reached out to him in response to these allegations and had counter-questioned that since he was only a Maj. Gen. in the Army in 2017-2018, could an officer of his rank alone send an elected government packing? In response to his own rhetorical question, Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Hamid said that only the Army Chief can make decisions in the Pakistan Army. In addition, decision [to disqualify PM Nawaz Sharif] was made by the Court.^[19]

Former General appointed as NAB Chair

On March 04, the Federal Government notified the appointment of former Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Nazir Ahmad as the Chairman of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB). The notification stated that the appointment was made “after detailed deliberation” between the Leader of the House [PM Shehbaz Sharif] and the Leader of the Opposition” [Raja Riaz Ahmed] as is the legal requirement. ^[20]

The new NAB chair has earlier served as President of the National Defence University (NDU) and as Pakistan’s military attaché in the US. ^[21] Since the formation of the NAB through an ordinance in November 1999 by Gen. Pervez Musharraf a month after he usurped power through a Martial Law, NAB has been chaired by at least two other retired lieutenant generals of the Pakistan Army earlier in addition to two former officials of the Pakistan Navy.

LHC strikes down the offence of sedition

On March 30, Justice Shahid Karim of the Lahore High Court (LHC) struck down the offence of sedition under Section 124-A of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) as being repugnant to the fundamental rights of citizens protected in the Constitution.

Section 124-A of the PPC, a part of chapter VI of “Offences against the State,” criminalized bringing into hatred or contempt, or exciting disaffection towards the federal or provincial government established by law through words, spoken or written, signs, visible representation, or otherwise. The lead petitioner, Mr. Haroon Farooq, argued that the law of sedition was a relic of oppressive colonial legacy that had been introduced to rule subjects, not citizens.^[22]

Former COAS denies Interviews with Journalists

Former Chief of Army Staff, General (Retd.) Qamar Javed Bajwa has denied giving any interview to journalist Mr. Shahid Maitla after his retirement. This was claimed by Mr. Javed Chaudhry and Mr. Kamran Shahid in their vlogs and tweet respectively.

In a tweet on March 24, Mr. Kamran Shahid wrote that “Gen Bajwa refutes the Interview—-Just have a telephonic conversation with Ex COAS Generel Bajwa – Bajwa sb says “I have not given interview to any one …” He further adds that “ I am going to take legal action…” ^[23] In another tweet, Mr. Kamran Shahid wrote that “Ex COAS Generel Bajwa has just shared with me the following statement “I did not give any interview to any body, I am not allowed to give any statement, comment or interview till 29 Nov 2024…” ^[24]

In his Vlog on March 25, Mr. Javed Chaudhry said that Gen. (Retd.) Bajwa has refuted giving any interview to Mr. Shahid Maitla. Gen. (Retd.) Bajwa agreed that he met Mr. Maitla through a relative but he did not speak of any political issue nor gave him permission to present or shape their normal discussion as an interview. ^[25] Mr. Javed Chaudhry has also claimed that that in April 2022 when then PM Mr. Khan had dissolved the National Assembly, Gen. (now Retd.) Bajwa had met the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) to fix a date for election within 3 months of the dissolution. As the matter reached the SC, the CJP Justice Bandial had also reached CEC to fix election date suitable for both the PTI and the PDM but the CEC said the pending census would delay holding of General Election for at least 7 months. Both the CEC and former COAS claim no such meeting was held yet, according to Mr. Chaudhry, staff of ECP has confirmed that such a meeting did indeed take place.

Mr. Shahid Maitla had claimed that he had conducted two interviews of Gen. (Retd.) Bajwa. Written and oral narration of these interviews have carried explosive details in which Gen. (Retd.) Bajwa mostly laid the blame on Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Faiz Hamid. ^[26] Mr. Maitla has claimed that as COAS Gen. Bajwa was told by Mr. Shehbaz Sharif as PM that the PDM government would go for elections after passing some laws but this position was not supported by Maulana Fazl ur Rehman and Mr. Asif Ali Zardari who supported being in government until the completion of the tenure of the National Assembly until August 2023. As DG ISI Lt. Gen. Faiz Hamid also wanted COAS Bajwa to oversee holding of General Election during his remaining tenure and also insisted that he meet Mr. Khan.^[27]

On March 03, former PM Mr. Imran Khan accused former COAS Gen. (Retd.) Bajwa of backstabbing him adding even after the PTI government was toppled through the ‘regime change conspiracy and that COAS Bajwa wanted to crush him. Mr Khan, who had earlier demanded an internal military inquiry against Gen. (Retd.) Bajwa, demanded that he should be “court-martialled.”^[28]

On March 28, the family of Mr. Hasan Askree, a civilian, who was court-martialled after writing a critical letter to former COAS Bajwa made a plea to military and judicial authorities for justice to be done in his case. According to the family, in October 2020, Mr. Hasan Askree was picked up from his home and transferred to military custody and was unjustly tried in a Field General Court Martial (FGCM) and sentenced to five years of rigorous imprisonment without being informed of the charges against him. His family claims that he was incarcerated alongside hardened criminals and terrorists in a maximum security prison and has not been transferred to Adiala jail despite a court order. Mr. Askaree’s father, Major General (Retd.) Syed Zaffar Mehdi Askree, said that his son’s ordeal was the result of letters he had written to COAS Bajwa expressing concerns about decisions made by the Armed forces and their impact on Pakistan’s economic and political situation.^[29]

Arrest and Bail of PTI Workers

On March 29, Judicial Magistrate Karachi (East) acquitted Mr. Hassaan Niazi, PTI chairman Imran Khan’s focal person on legal affairs and his nephew, in a case for inciting people to revolt against national institutions. The Sindh High Court (SHC) also fixed for hearing a constitutional petition filed by the father of PTI’s focal person Mr. Hassaan Khan Niazi against registration of cases and arrest of his son.^[30]

Mr. Niazi was detained on March 20 in a case related to misbehaving with police officials after securing pre-arrest bail in three other cases as he was leaving the judicial complex in the federal capital. A local court in Islamabad on March 21 approved his two day physical remand. After its expiry, he was again sent to jail on 14-day judicial remand.^[31]

On March 30, the LHC ordered the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to recover and produce Mr. Azhar Mashwani, another PTI social media activist who was picked up on charges of criticising the Punjab police and the caretaker government for allegedly using high-handed tactics against party workers on March 23, 2023.

Earlier, the Amnesty International had raised concern over the disappearance of Mr Mashwani, and said that the organisation is “alarmed by reports of the enforced disappearance of Azhar Mashwani, whose whereabouts remain unknown.” ^[32]

New Governor of Balochistan

On March 03, Malik Abdul Wali Khan Kakar of the Balochistan National Party (BNP-Mengal was appointed as the new Governor of Balochistan. Former Governor of Balochistan, Syed Zahoor Ahmed Agha, had resigned in April 2022 after the ouster of the PTI’s federal government and since then Speaker Balochistan Assembly, Mir Jan Muhammad Khan Jamali had been performing duties as acting governor. ^[33]

PAC directs AG to audit SC Accounts

On March 7, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) under the chairmanship of Mr. Noor Alam Khan, MNA, directed the Auditor General (AG) to audit the accounts of the Supreme Court and to submit a report to the PAC. The PAC has also sought details of salaries, perks, and plots allotted to Judges of superior courts.^[34]

No effort being made to meet COAS: Imran Khan

Former Prime Minister and PTI Chairman Mr. Imran Khan, in an interview with BBC Urdu aired on March 09, claimed that his party’s problems had increased after the appointment of the new Army Chief. Mr. Khan said, “humarey liye koi faraq nahi para; hum ye umeed rakh rahey thay ke jab Gen. Bajwa ne government girayi thi toh naya Chief aye ga toh change aaye ga; par abhi tak to koi change nahi; balke kai tarah tu sakhti aur barh gai hai.” ^[35]

On March 3, in a conversation with journalists in Lahore, Mr. Imran Khan said that he was ready to talk to the Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir “for the betterment of the country” and had “no quarrel with the establishment” but cannot do anything if no one [from the establishment] is willing to talk to him. ^[36]

In another interview with BBC Urdu aired on March 15, when asked whether any effort was being made from his end to meet the current Army Chief, Mr. Imran Khan said that no effort was being made. He added, however, that any political party wants to open political doors for itself. This is what was conveyed to former COAS Bajwa as well [in meeting with him] to hold elections and save the country as economy would not stabilise until there is political stabilisation, he added. “Koi koshish nahin ki ja rahi; lekin aik political party hamesha apnay raastay kholti hai; aur kya chahti kya hai; Gen [Retd.] Bajwa se bhi mil ke kya kaha tha? Election kar wado; mulk ko bacha lo; jab tak political stability nahin aaye gi, economy tau stabilise nahin kernay lagi,” he said. ^[37]

When asked that it can be understood that his disappearance from the scene [through his arrest] might benefit the PDM, but how can it benefit the Army Chief, Mr. Imran Khan said that he failed to understand this himself as to why the current COAS took this position which was hurting the Pakistan Army as an institution. He also added that the COAS might be doing so because he may have made a promise to Mr. Nawaz Sharif. ^[38]

“Mujhe iss army chief ki nahin samajh aa rahi ke woh kiyun back ker rahai hain; kya un ko samajh nahin aa rahi ke hamaray idaray ko nuqsan pohonoch raha hai… aap shayed mujh se poochain tau shayed koi waada kiya ho Nawaz Sharif se,” ^[39] said Mr. Khan.

It was reported earlier that Gen Asim Munir had held a meeting with leading businessmen of Pakistan alongside Finance Minister Senator Ishaq Dar on March 6.^[40] Reportedly the COAS had indicated during the meeting that while Mr. Khan had requested a meeting with the COAS but the COAS declined to meet him by taking the view that it was not his job as COAS to meet politicians.^[41]

In an address to the nation on March 10, Mr. Imran Khan had said that his party was facing repression which was worse than martial law. He also questioned who was the most powerful person in the country who, despite court orders, was not allowing to telecast Mr. Imran Khan’s speech and who was trying to cover up party worker Mr. Zille Shah’s death. ^[42] “Ab yeh kaun itna taqatwar hai ke High Court ke faislay ke bawajood who hukam kerta hai ke janab Imran Khan ko nahin dikhana aur who nahin dikhatay; kaun itna taqatwar hai?” he said ^[43]

In a jalsa on Minar-e-Pakistan on March 25, Mr. Imran Khan also questioned the establishment whether they had a programme to save the country from the current crisis. ^[44]

In an interview with UK’s Channel 4 news on March 23, Mr Khan said that “we are heading towards martial law” as the postponement of Punjab Assembly election by the ECP was a violation of the Constitution. ^[45]

On March 20, Prime Minister Mr. Shehbaz Sharif accused PTI of carrying out a smear campaign against Chief of the Army Staff.^[46]

There were errors in judgments: Justice (Retd.) Saqib Nisar

In conversation with a number of journalists, former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Mian Saqib Nisar has said that there is a possibility of errors in his judgments and expressed his readiness to explain any mistakes made.

Mr. Adil Shahzeb of Dawn news reported that the former CJP clarified that the Supreme Court had not declared Mr. Imran Khan ‘sadiq and ameen’ unreservedly in all aspects of his conduct, but only in regards to the issues raised in the case examined in the judgment before the Court at the time. Justice Nisar also denied allegation against him that he was lobbying for Mr. Imran Khan and said that he was trying to help the PTI chief understand to respect the courts, not to blemish the judiciary, and save the system. He also said that his ongoing contact with former DG ISI Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Faiz Hamid was only limited to the latter inquiring about his well-being via text messages. The former CJP also claimed that his WhatsApp account had been hacked and suspected that his data was being misused.^[47]

In another interview with Samaa news, Justice Nisar reportedly claimed that Mr. Imran Khan had called him and asked for favours such as help for his current court cases on which Justice Nisar had advised Mr. Khan to respect the Courts and institutions.^[48]

ECP suspends election schedule for Bye-Elections on 37 NA Seats

 On March 12, the ECP suspended the bye-election schedule for 37 National Assembly seats that had fallen vacant after the resignation of PTI lawmakers following orders issued by high courts in Islamabad, Peshawar, Sindh, and Balochistan. The by-elections were scheduled for March 16 and 19. ^[49]

On March 14, three former MNAs of the PTI moved the PHC against the April 30 by-elections in three National Assembly constituencies of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, stating that the holding of by-polls in their respective constituencies was unconstitutional as the term of the National Assembly will expire on August 14, 2023 and polling cannot be held 120 days before that. ^[50] On March 15, the PHC gave more time to the assembly’s speaker and the ECP to file a response to the matter and extended its stay order against the by-elections in 24 National Assembly constituencies of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa until the next hearing scheduled for April 18. ^[51]

Public details of foreign gifts

On March 12, the Federal Government made public the details of foreign gifts retained by public office holders and journalists from 2002 to 2022. However, the LHC has ordered the Federal Government to release complete record of the Toshakhana for an 11-year period, from 1990 to 2001, along with details of the gift given to foreign dignitaries and countries. The Federal Government had earlier taken the plea that sharing of additional information would harm relations with other states.^[52]

The media reports that sifted through these public records highlighted that most of these gifts were retained by the office holders free of cost, except for a few ones, and that some of the office holders gave away gifts worth millions of rupees to foreign delegates in return for the gifts received. ^[53]

On March 13, the PAC also ordered an audit of the Toshakhana to determine losses to the national exchequer after dignitaries retained presents given by foreign governments instead of depositing them into the vault of gifts.^[54]

The Federal Cabinet has also introduced a new policy for Toshakhana gifts under which public office-holders, except those in BPS-1 to BPS-4, can only retain presents worth less than US $ 300. Cash awards have been disallowed also and if these cannot be declined, it is incumbent to immediately deposit the cash amount received to the treasury. The rules have also disallowed gifts for spouses or family members. All gifts must be reported and deposited in Toshakhana within 30 days of receipt, and punitive action will be taken against individuals who fail to do so. The chief of protocol or the sponsoring ministry will provide details of the gifts received and their recipients. Perishable items can be retained without reporting to Toshakhana, and the value of gifts will be assessed by experts in the Federal Board of Revenue or private appraisers. Weapons received as gifts will be assessed by an expert of Pakistan Ordnance Factories in Wah.^[55]

Withdrawal of Reference against Justice Isa

After assuming power nearly a year ago, Prime Minister Mr. Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, on March 30, ordered immediate withdrawal of the reference filed against Justice Qazi Faez Isa in 2019 by the previous federal government and termed it as “baseless and politically motivated.” On March 31, President Dr Arif Alvi gave his approval to the withdrawal of the curative review reference and Civil Miscellaneous Application (CMA) against Justice Qazi Faez Isa on the advice of the PM in accordance with Article 48 of the Constitution. ^[56]

Piling up Cases against Mr. Imran Khan

In an interview with RT’s Going Underground aired on March 25, Mr. Imran Khan has claimed that to remove him from election race, government had filed 143 cases against him “which must be a World record, ” he said. ^[57]

“I have been in the public eye for the past 50 years; I am the most well-known Pakistani in our history; and people know me I have never broken any law and sadly in the last few months, in trying to remove me from the election race, they have filed 143 cases so far which start from blasphemy to sedition to terrorism,” said Mr. Khan. A timeline of developments in this regard is given below:

1. On March 04, PTI Chairman dodged arrest as Islamabad Police showed up at his Zaman Park residence in Lahore with court summons to take him into custody for his persistent absences from Toshakhana court hearings.^[58]
2. A day after Islamabad police again retuned empty handed from its mission to arrest Mr. Khan, Mr. Khan refused to cooperate with a NAB team, which visited his house in Zaman Park to serve summons in connection with the prohibited funding case.^[59]
3. In a raid at his residence on March 18, Punjab police used heavy machinery to break into his residence in Lahore while his wife and sister were inside. The police claimed they had search warrants from an anti-terrorism court and found weapons, petrol bombs, and marbles inside and successfully cleared the no-go areas established around the residence. ^[60] Mr. Khan, however, counterclaimed that the attack was staged by the PDM government only to arrest him and linked the raid to the so-called ‘London Plan bring absconder Mr. Nawaz Sharif to power and was not about ensuring to appear before the court in a case, but was intended to take him away to prison so that he is unable to lead PTI election campaign.^[61]
4. On March 18, a trial court hearing the Toshakhana reference against Mr. Khan cancelled his arrest warrants and adjourned the hearing after marking his attendance due to the law and order situation and scuffles between the police and PTI activists. Clashes broke out between the police and the PTI supporters ahead of the hearing resulting in injuries to at least 25 people. The party supporters also burned down a police post. ^[62]
5. On March 19, dozens of PTI workers and family members of some leaders were either picked up or harassed during late-night police raids on their houses hours after party Chairman Imran Khan and others were booked in 2 terrorism cases by the Islamabad police. ^[63] On March 21, the LHC granted interim protective bail to Mr. Khan in four cases with two of these related to terrorism and other two filed by the NAB. Mr. Khan appeared before the LHC without a large convoy where he was directed to sign petitions and affidavits.^[64]
6. On March 27, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) granted interim pre-arrest bail to Mr. Imran Khan in 7 cases pending in different courts of the federal capital. The IHC division bench comprising Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb restrained the police from arresting Mr. Khan till April 6, 2023. In a related development, the LHC also constituted a full bench to hear the PTI chairman’s petition seeking details of cases registered against him in different cities.^[65]

LHC stops handover of land to Army

On March 31, in response to a writ by the Public Interest Law Association of Pakistan (PILAP), the Lahore High Court halted the handover of 45,267 acres of land on lease to the Pakistan Army for corporate farming in three districts of Punjab in Bhakkar, Khushab, and Sahiwal. ^[66]

It was reported in the media that the Punjab caretaker government had signed agreement to hand over land under a joint venture (JV) agreement signed between the military, the Punjab government private firms dealing with corporate farming. ^[67]

The PILAP’s counsel had argued that the scope of the caretaker government was limited to day-to-day functions, and it had no power to make policy decisions of a permanent nature, such as giving state land on lease for 30 years. The counsel also argued that the purported handing over of the land violated the doctrine of Public Trust which stated that the government was responsible for protecting natural resources and could not give them away to private citizens arbitrarily. Finally, the counsel argued that there was no provision in the Pakistan Army Act, 1952, empowering the entity to undertake any activity beyond its scope for welfare unless the federal government expressly granted permission to do so.^[68]

COAS meets business community

On March 06, COAS, General Syed Asim Munir met with ten top businessmen from Pakistan to discuss the country’s economic situation and provide reassurance that Pakistan has overcome the possibility of default. ^[69]

The business community was informed that all prior conditions of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had been met and a deal was expected to be completed within days.

Apparently the meeting with the COAS was convened on the request of business community while the COAS had invited Finance Minister Senator Ishaq Dar to join the meeting. ^[70]

Journalist Kamran Khan tweeted that the meeting had lasted over 3 hours. ^[71]

Terrorist Attacks

During March 2023 12 attacks occurred across Pakistan which resulted in the loss of lives of 41 people including 12 civilians, 22 security forces personnel and 7 militants.

Speaker National Assembly meets Foreign Dignitaries

1. On March 01, UN Women Country Representative Ms. Sharmeela Rassool called on Raja Parvez Ashraf, Speaker, National Assembly at the Parliament House, Islamabad.^[84]
2. On March 16, H.E. Mr. Agon Vrenezi, Ambassador of the Republic of Kosovo to Pakistan, called on Raja Parvez Ashraf, Speaker, National Assembly at the Parliament House, Islamabad.^[85]
3. On March 30, Raja Parvez Ashraf, Speaker, National Assembly met with Ambassadors of Diverse Nations at the Foreign Office, Islamabad.^[86]

Chairman Senate meets Foreign Dignitaries

1. On March 16, Senator Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani, Chairman Senate, met with Ambassadors of diverse countries on occasion of golden jubilee ceremony of the Senate at the Parliament House, Islamabad.^[87]
2. On March 17, Mr. Zhang Zhijun, President MCC Resources Development Company Ltd. (MRDL) called on Senator Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani, Chairman Senate at the Parliament House, Islamabad.^[88]

Interactions of COAS with Foreign Dignitaries

There were no reported interactions of Chief of the Army Staff General Syed Asim Munir with foreign dignitaries during the month of March 2023.

Prime Minister’s Interactions with COAS

Prime Minister Mr. Shahbaz Sharif, and Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Asim Munir met twice during the month of March 2023.

1. On March 02, COAS called on PM at the PM Office, Islamabad. Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif was not present in the meeting.^[89]
2. On March 20, PM and COAS met at civilian and military high command meeting in Islamabad. Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif was present in the meeting.^[90]

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