The remarks made by two benches of the Supreme Court about the state of democracy should be heeded by the government, for though some of the remarks related to all parties, they primarily appertained to the present PTI government. The government should take them more seriously not just because the Supreme Court can enforce its will, as it can, but because the gaps indicated tend to mean that democracy is failing in the country, because the problem areas identified are the bedrock of a functioning democracy.
The two-member Supreme Court bench hearing the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa dissolution case saw Mr Justice Faez Isa remark that a local body system was essential to democracy, and asked without being answered why was there such a delay in the notification of the 2017 census results, which is the main excuse the government tenders for not holding the election, as the elections require fresh delimitations according to a notified census. This is something the PTI should be pressing for, because the need for an effective local government system was something it stressed while in opposition.
The same Bench also took note of the lack of press freedom by conducting a quick survey of the journalists present in the court-room. While the survey was not scientific, the unanimity among pressmen that the press was not free was not to be neglected by the government. The government should also pay attention to the remarks by another Bench, one headed by the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Mr Justice Gulzar Ahmad, hearing the reference about whether Senate elections needed a secret ballot. The CJP himself remarked that political parties were dominated by certain individuals and not run democratically.
Put together, the impression is unavoidable that the Supreme Court takes a dim view of how the present government is handling democracy. It should pay heed to the Supreme Court’s criticisms, for they are not just academic, and they strike at the heart of how the country is being run. Besides, these criticisms are applicable to all governments, not just the present one.
