We are accustomed to live in a state of turmoil and this is because, the state apparatus has coerced us to live in a situation of severe confusion for last more than seventy years. The vagueness and ambiguities which persist in our system has impelled us to endorse it, without putting a question mark on it. Today almost maximum of our population has turned their eyes off on this quagmire which is usually perceived as dirty marshy land.
Like the previous one, Nawaz Sharif once again became successful in paving his way for London. When the military dictator General Musharraf threw him in a military coup d’état in October 1999, he was subsequently trialed and sent to life imprisonment on the charges of putting lives at risk of passengers who were on board including some military personnel. Later, he went to Saudi Arabia along with his family putting a big question mark on the judicial system of Pakistan.
The recent departure of a three time prime minister is not different from the previous one. The only difference is that it was facilitated by a military dictator with connivance of controlled judiciary, and this time it is made possible by a civilian leadership which is validated by a Lahore High Court although, some conspiracy theories say that the establishment is equally complicit in this matter. The Lahore High Court allowed the ex-premier to travel abroad and directed the federal government to remove Sharif’s name from no-fly list, without producing and furnishing any indemnity bond for eight weeks. The Sharif was facing seven years in jail in Al Azizia Steel Mills corruption reference. Now, right after his departure both the government and judiciary are trying to throw the onus on each other.
Here reminds a saying of Senator Cato who said about Rome then, is true of Pakistan today. “Simple thieves lie in prison and in stock; public thieves walk abroad in gold and silk”.
The justice system generates skepticism on the whole system of Pakistan. It has always been lenient and favored the politically and economically strong individuals in the course of Pakistani history. It never took the well-off people to courts who can buy, coerce and hijack the whole system. If we have an eye on the last seventy-two years history of Pakistan, we can find several instances where, it has been lenient towards powerful and regressive towards the unprivileged and downtrodden section of our society.
This biased attitude of the organ of the state does not precipitate something good for the future of Pakistan. The state institutions should have homogenous behavior towards everyone regardless of his political, social and economic position. If we evaluate things in Islamic perspective it also teaches us to have a homogenous treatment for everyone. Law and its implementation should be same for everyone. It can be vociferously said that justice is an obligation in Islam and injustice is severely forbidden.
We can find several good examples from the life of Holy Prophet (PBUH), when he (PBUH) dispensed justice in a just way. One of such examples is when a woman belonging from a clan of the Quraysh tribe in Makkah was brought in front of Prophet (PBUH) on the charges of theft, the Quraysh became worried and asked to mitigate the penalty. The Holy Prophet’s (PBUH) answer was phenomenal. He (PBUH) said “If my own daughter Fatima had stolen, I would have cut of her hands”.
As Islam is the religion of Pakistan and Pakistan also came into being in the name of Islam. So, institutions here should follow the Islamic principles. If we follow two justice systems, one for upper class and other for lower class, there will be a complete chaos which will ultimately unleash into a state of anarchy. Furthermore, the government and its subordinate institutions should huddle together and make certain reforms in the justice system of Pakistan. It shouldn’t be biased and lenient towards well off people and regressive towards poor people.