Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Friday upped the ante in its standoff with the ruling PPP, warning the government that any move to dismiss judges would be deemed an act of subversion and a violation of the Constitution.

The warning was issued by a 17-judge bench headed by independent-minded Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry that initiated suo motu proceedings on media reports that the Pakistan People’s Party-led government was planning to dismiss judges hearing an appeal against a verdict that annulled a graft amnesty which benefited President Asif Ali Zardari and over 8,000 others.

Though Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said last night that media reports about the possible dismissal of judges were “baseless,” the Chief Justice said during Friday’s proceedings that, according to his information, the reports were not false.

He said the government should conduct a probe into the media reports. The bench unanimously issued a restraining order that directed constitutional and government functionaries, including the Prime Minister, President and army chief, not to take any step against the judges.

Such a step, the bench warned, would be deemed an act of subversion as it would violate Article 6 of the Constitution, which relates to high treason. “Any step (to remove the judges) would be tantamount to the toppling of an important pillar of state and subverting the Constitution,” the Chief Justice said.

The drama began late last night after several TV news channels reported that the government was contemplating the withdrawal of a notification issued in March last year to restore the Chief Justice and dozens of members of the superior judiciary who were sacked by former military ruler Pervez Musharraf during the 2007 emergency.

The Chief Justice and all judges of the apex court, who were in their homes when the channels beamed the news, returned to the court and held a meeting that continued well past midnight.

A statement issued to the media at about 1 am said the Chief Justice had constituted a 17-member full bench to take up the government’s alleged intention to de-notify the restoration of judges.

The full bench convened this morning and the Chief Justice told Attorney General Anwar-ul-Haq to submit a statement signed by Prime Minister Gilani giving the government’s viewpoint. The bench told Haq that the court wanted to fully understand the government’s stand in the matter. 

Sedrun, October 15
A giant drilling machine punched its way through a final section of Alpine rock today to complete the world’s longest tunnel, after 15 years of construction.In a stage-managed breakthrough, attended by some 200 dignitaries 30 km inside the tunnel and broadcast live on Swiss television, engineers from both sides shook hands after the bore had pummelled through the final 1.5 metres of rock.

“Here, in the heart of the Swiss Alps, one of the biggest environmental projects on the continent has become reality,” said Swiss Transport Minister Moritz Leuenberger.

Tunnel workers paid tribute to their colleagues who had died on the construction site with a minute’s silence as the names of the eight victims were read out during an emotional ceremony for the breakthrough.

“Workers, thank you, thank you, thank you. We have not only built a tunnel, we have written history,” said Luzi Gruber, of the construction company Implenia.

The 57 km high-speed rail link, which will open in 2017, will form the lynchpin of a new rail network between northern and southeastern Europe and help ease congestion and pollution in the Swiss Alps.

It is the third tunnel to be built through the snowbound St Gotthard area but it is much the longest and 3 km longer than a rail link between two Japanese islands, the current record holder at 53.8 km.

“The myth of the Gotthard has been broken for a third time. Our forefathers struggled from the Middle Ages onwards to make this mountain passable,” Peter Fueglistaler, director of the Federal Transport office, told journalists.

But the 7 billion euro tunnel, which is 9.5 metres in diameter, is also the fruit of popular wave of environmental concern in the Swiss Alps with booming road traffic transiting from neighbouring countries. — AFP