Judiciary playing role of watchman, says Justice Ramday

[Naveed Yaseen]

* SC judge says lawyers’ movement has not ended yet and lawyers and the society have to keep it up in another direction

By Imran Asghar

RAWALPINDI: The judiciary does not claim supremacy over the other state institutions but it’s playing the role of a watchman, said Supreme Court judge Justice Khalil-ur-Rehman Ramday on Saturday while laying the foundations of a new building on the district court premises named after him.

Lawyers representing the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), Rawalpindi District Bar Association (RDBA), Islamabad District Bar Association (IDBA) and Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi Bench, Bar Association (LHCBA) attended the ceremony. All the judges of lower courts were also present on the occasion.

“The superior judiciary of Pakistan does not want confrontation with the other institutions of the state on any issue but it is just playing the role of a watchman,” he said, adding, “The lawyers’ movement spanning around two years for the supremacy of the Constitution and independence of the judiciary has not ended yet and the lawyers and all sections of the society have to keep it up in another direction.”

Justice Ramday said that the lawyers` movement was not meant for restoration of some sacked judges but it was a continuous struggle for provision of justice to every Pakistani and the lawyers have to give more sacrifices for it.

He said the whole nation participated in the lawyers` movement for the right cause and now it was their [judiciary] turn to provide them with speedy justice, otherwise, they would remove them from their higher posts.

“The judiciary could not provide justice to the people alone and the lawyers will have to help it meet this challenge,” he said. Ramday said that justice began from the chambers of the lawyers and if they assisted people for their right cause then the judiciary could handle the situation.

“We have to unite to provide justice to this nation for if we [both the lawyers and the judiciary] failed to provide justice to the people then the lawyers struggle would be considered a dead chapter of the history.” He said the judiciary did not want to compete with the other institutions of the state but it was its sole responsibility to secure the Constitution.

“Our forefathers founded an independent state for us after a conclusive struggle but we could not protect it and at last our Pakistan broke into two pieces in 1971, as we stopped the struggle. Similarly, if we stopped the lawyers’ struggle then we could be thrown back into the previous position,” said Justice Ramday.

He said the judiciary would have to make itself a role model for the others.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...009_pg11_3