“Never forget that you are the servants of the state. You do not
make policy. It is we, the people’s representatives, who decide how
the country is to be run. Your job is to only obey the decisions of
your civilian masters.”
This is what Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah had to say
when he addressed the Military Staff College in Quetta on June 14,
1948. It was as if he knew what the future had in store for the
newly-democratic state that was created on the principles of Islam
and with special emphasis on equality and democracy. Sadly, the
top two founding father of the country – Jinnah and Prime
Minister Liaqut Ali Khan both left the world in the first 4 years of
its existence, and the rest is history.
Although those who managed to handle the affairs of Pakistan
were able and respected leaders, they lacked the vision of their
predecessors. It was due to their mismanagement and the
observation that the 1956 Constitution was contributing to
political instability, that saw President Iskander Mirza stage a coup
d'état on 7 October 1958. He abrogated the 1956 constitution,
imposed martial law and appointed General Muhammad Ayub
Khan as the Chief Martial Law Administrator (1). However, only
three weeks later General Ayub deposed Iskandar Mirza on 27
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)
October 1958 and assumed the presidency that practically
formalized the militarization of the political system in Pakistan.
The dethroned Governor General / President was then banished
from the country and lived in exile in London till his death in
1969.
The influence of the army in Pakistan can be judged from the fact
that the country’s first President – Iskander Mirza – was not
allowed burial in the country after his death in November 1969.
His body was flown to Tehran where the Shah of Iran gave him a
State Funeral befitting a Head of State.
My argument is that the armed forces of the country are it’s first
and foremost line of defence. But sadly, in our country, the
military has played an influential role in mainstream politics, with
military presidents ruling most of the 62 years of its existence.
Ayub Khan and Yahya Khan were the first to take the country
down from 1958 to 1971. General Zia ul Haq ruled with an iron
fist from 1977 till his demise in 1988 while the last of the dictators
– General Pervez Musharraf dethroned an elected government to
take charge in 1999 and continued till he was ousted in 2008.
Although some may argue that Ayub Khan’s initial period as the
Head of State was the most beneficial for the country, it wasn’t
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)
democratic since he had his own constitution – the country’s first
and only unilateral system enlisting the President as the sole
ruler(2). Instead of bowing down to the public pressure, he left the
power to General Yahya Khan who was the worst thing to happen
to Pakistan. Not only did India seize the opportunity to take away
East Pakistan from us, Yahya Khan was ousted soon after the
general elections were held and Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was asked to
form the government in the torn Pakistan(3).
It was only till 1977 that Bhutto was able to rule the country as
Prime Minister because public agitation and riots marred the
country once it was alleged that he had rigged the general elections,
to keep power. Army came into force once again, this time it was
Bhutto’s favorite General Zia ul Haq who ousted his master and
then ensured that the elected leader was hanged for a single
murder, in the land where others go scot free after committing
mass murders(4).
It was during the Zia regime that Pakistan became a major U.S.
ally. Pakistan helped Afghanis sustain against and defeat Soviet
Union in the 80s but relations soured after Zia’s untimely death in
the 90s. But it was during this period that the country had least
possible intervention from the army. Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)
Sharif came to power twice during 1988 – 1999 and although
General Asif Nawaz and General Abdul Waheed had a strong say
in the matters of national importance, none ever came close to
dethrone the ‘democracy’. In fact it were the Presidents Ghulam
Ishaq Khan and Farooq Leghari who dissolved the Parliament
over allegations ranging from mismanagement to corruption.
General Pervez Musharraf, who neither had any chance to become
the Army Chief of the country nor, as he claims, were his
intentions ever to rule the country, came to power on 12th October
1999 and resigned from his ‘duties’ just days before he was to be
impeached. It is during his ‘democratic’ rule that Pakistan
strengthened its relations with US as he chose to opt for the lesser
evil. But it is that evil that has seen the country reach the point of
no return. Its positive side was evidenced by a major increase in
American military aid, providing Pakistan $4 billion more in three
years after the 9/11 attacks than before. But it has more than
meets the eye. The negative aspects of this relationship saw
Taliban grip Pakistan like never before and bomb blasts, suicide
bombings and attacks on the armed forces of the country have
become norm of the day.
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)
But the army is not all that bad – it does what it thinks is the right
step. If I am allowed to defend the conduct of armed forces, I
would like to state that Pakistan’s first real debacle didn’t involve
the army. It featured the Parliament and the Supreme Court. It
happened when within 7 years of its creation, when in 1954, the
Assembly of Pakistan tried to change the constitution to establish
checks on the Governor-General's powers. In response, Ghulam
Muhammad dismissed the Assembly, an action that was challenged
in the Supreme Court. Ghulam Muhammad emerged victorious
when the Court upheld the dismissal in a split decision, despite the
dissenting opinion written by the renowned Justice A. R.
Cornelius, and protests from the members of the Assembly. This
action is now seen as the beginning of “viceregal” politics in
Pakistan, in which the military and civil bureaucracy, not elected
officials, govern the country and maintain substantial influence
over society and the provinces. Ghulam Muhammad was later
dismissed by acting Governor-General Iskander Mirza who
believed that his predecessor was too old to continue his duties.
Ghulam Muhammad had the honour of being the first Head of
State ever to dissolve the assembly and kill democracy. He not only
dissolved the Constituent Assembly and appointed a new Council
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)
of Ministers but won the case after the step was challenged in
court by President of the Constituent Assembly, Maulvi
Tamizuddin. The Chief Court of Sindh ruled in favour of
Tamizuddin but the Supreme Court didn’t, an act that made the
Governor General impose the first emergency in a country going
through its infancy. In the appeal hearing under Chief Justice
Muhammad Munir, the court decided that the Constituent
Assembly functioned as the 'Legislature of the Domain' and that
the Governor-General's assent was necessary for all legislation to
become law. Therefore, the Chief Court of Sindh had no
jurisdiction to overturn the Governor General's dissolution and it
was held as valid.
The usual suspect in Pakistan’s case is The Doctrine of Necessity
verdict by Chief Justice Muhammad Munir in 1955(5). The verdict
validated the extra-constitutional use of emergency powers by the
then Governor General Ghulam Mohammad, and later used in
their favour by the Army chiefs who seized power for their own
benefits. In his judgment, the Chief Justice declared it was
necessary to go beyond the constitution to what he claimed was
the Common Law, to general legal maxims, and to English
historical precedent.
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)
If I could ever go back in time to correct something, I would
ensure that The Doctrine of Necessity used to describe the legal
basis for a controversial 1954 judgment never see the light of the
day. It was this verdict that gave Pakistani dictators a chance to
flex their muscles, whenever their chance, not the need arose.
It was the same Doctrine that inspired Pervez Musharraf to
impose Emergency on November 3rd 2007 in a country that was
not ready for the step. Just like his predecessor dictators, Pervez
Musharraf started losing his popularity in the latter part of his rule.
His controversial decisions including the massacre at Laal Masjid,
the dissolution of the Supreme Court judges including the Chief
Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry in 2007 on petty ‘alleged’ complaints saw
the whole nation stand up against him. Although he made one last
attempt to prolong his rule with the highly debatable NRO
(National Reconciliation Order), Musharaf failed to remain in
power and had to resign in ***************.
In his autobiography ‘In The Line of Fire’, the second such
attempt by a military ruler of the country, Musharraf confessed to
have created the Quaid-e-Azam faction of Pakistan Muslim League
headed by Chaudhry Shujaat(6). Sadly, no one would have thought
that the Quaid’s name would be used by a military dictator to give
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)
himself political legitimacy. It was the Quaid who had hoped
Pakistan Army stayed away from Politics. Sadly, not even the
Quaid knew that it would be the Army that would not fight on the
border against the enemy but will stay in the corridors of power to
fight for the truth, justice, the way they wanted!
AV Dicey, one of the greatest jurists of all time, describes the
armed forces to be the force of the executive(7). Unfortunately the
UK model which we have tried to adopt clearly defines that the
armed forces are the subordinate of the elected governments and
they should act in accordance with the wishes of the peoples’
elected government and parliament.
Sadly in Pakistan, we are not on the right path, in fact at times it
seems were don’t have a path to follow. The army (when in power)
tries to vest all the executive power in the president which
according to the British system is only the ceremonial head and is
immune from any litigation. Having such a system creates an
imbalance in the powers between the prime minister and the
president. In such a case, one cannot hold the president
accountable, whereas the prime minister is answerable to the
parliament.
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)
According to cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, the system
we have in Pakistan is neither presidential nor parliamentary form
of government. It is this system alone that is leading the country to
the brink of disaster because it neither has any check nor any
accountability(8). This unaccountable way of governance leads to
some undemocratic decision making such as out of turn
promotions and postings of the civil servants which proves
disastrous for the nation and in recent times, has proven deadly as
in the case of PIA, Pakistan Railways and almost all state-owned
business institutions.
We should not blame the army alone in leading this country to the
point of no return. The politicians are equally inept when it comes
to governance, and they should share 40% of the burden, if not
half. They create the mistrust amongst the masses through their
policies driven by vested interests and powerful pressure groups.
As Javed Hashmi, a senior politician of the Pakistan Muslim
League – Nawaz Group, writes in his book Baaghi, the politicians
are to be blamed for misleading the people so much so that the
masses fail to bifurcate between military and civilian rule.
He is very correct in his analysis because the people are so
disgusted by the political governments’ performance that they sort
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)
of welcome martial law by stating they don’t care whether there is
democracy in the country.
On the other hand, the politicians join hands with the military
establishment to destabilize the sitting governments like the
creation of IJI, Operation Midnight Jackal. It is a disgrace for the
nation that people like Lt. General Hamid Gul and Lt. General
Asad Durrani openly confess that they created IJI, offered
intelligence money to politicians and even then are not accountable
to anyone(9).
But things don’t end here. As mentioned earlier, General
Musharraf, along with Major General Ehtesham Zameer (DG ISI
Internal Wing) and Tariq Aziz (National Security Advisor) was not
far behind anyone in wasting taxpayers’ hard earned money for the
compilation of a criminal and corrupt gang of politicians (PML-Q)
to elect him democratically. So when General Ehtesham Zameer
publicly accepted on TV that he had a role in the establishment of
PML-Q, not all were shocked.
Eminent lawyers like Barrister Atizaz Ahsan and Munir Malik have
mentioned this several times in their speeches that now is the time
for the people to change this great nation from being a National
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)
security state to a welfare state. Munir Malik clearly mentions in his
book “THE UNFINISHED AGENDA” a demarcation amongst
state institutions and a clear separation of power within all the
three institutions Parliament, Judiciary and The Executive to have
check and balance on each other which would eventually result in
smooth running of the state(10).
Although military rule does benefit people in its early years due to
its consistency and the stability it brings with its economic policies,
it damages the cycle, leading to economic and social unrest during
its last phase when it is the matter of survival for the dictator.
Renowned industrialist S.M. Munir believes ‘We should try to
make Pakistan a welfare state and strengthen state institutions
instead of individuals with all state actors creating democratic
mindsets, corruption free way of governance and creating
tolerance for each other.’(11)
Politicians in our country should take the example of Venezuela
where the people came to the streets to stop the military coup. We
can do the same to stop military interventions leading to martial
law and dictatorship.
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)
Before conclusion, I would like to say that if military personnel
want to run the government, they should quit the armed forces
and enter the arena of politics as was successfully done by former
Indian Foreign Minister and BJP leader Jaswant Singh(12).
In the end, we would like to hope that if we want this great nation
to prosper, we have to eradicate injustice, root out dictatorship in
all its forms (Military and Civilian) and bring democracy in the
political parties who should rule this great nation in future.
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)
BIBLOGRAPHY
1-IN THE LINE OF FIRE (PERVAIZ MUSHARRAF)
2-BAAGHI BY (JAVED HASHMI)
3-THE UNFINISHED AGENDA (MUNIR MALIK)
4-EXCERPTS FROM MAJOR GENERAL EHTESHAM
ZAMEER’S INTERVIEW TO DAWN NEWS
5-CAPITAL TALK AND NAJAM SETHI KAY SAATH (FOR
IMRAN KHAN AND ARMY’S ROLE IN POLITICS)
6-DIVIDED BY DEMOCRACY BY (ATIZAZ AHSAN AND
MEGHNAD DESAI)
7-JINNAH: INDIA PARTITION INDEPENDENCE
(JASWANT SINGH)
8-WIKIPEDIA
9-Farooq Bajwa
10-Ikram Rabbani
1-Farooq Bajwa page 161
2-Farooq Bajwa page 162
3-Farooq Bajwa page 166-171
4-Farooq Bajwa page 180-182
5-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Chapter 3)
6-In the line of fire by Pervaiz Musharraf (“Putting the system right” pg166)
7-University of London Public Law guide book (Chapter Seperation of Powers)/Hillary Barnnet (Chapter
Seperation of Powers)
8-Capital talk by Hamid Meer at GEO TV
9-Air Marshal Asghar Khan petition at the supreme court in 1993
10-The Unfinished Agenda by Munir Malik (Seperation of power Appendix 3)
11-Interview of S.M.Munir (renowned industrialist)
12-Jinnah by Jaswant Singh (Introductory paragraph)