Pakistan’s judiciary bleeds, but Rawalpindi enjoys American patronage

Pakistan’s internal convulsions have become so much a part of its daily news that most analysts take every new development as par for the course. But it is certainly time to sit up and take notice when its establishment decides to send poisonous letters to its judiciary. That’s a new low, even for Rawalpindi. But as always with that country, it doesn’t seem to have prevented the US from again taking a cautious interest in its affairs, at a time when its relationship with India is perceived as having hit something of a low.

Pakistan’s judiciary stands up to fight

Just days ago, a letter from six Islamabad High Court judges to the Supreme Judicial Council made some shocking allegations about Pakistan’s intelligence apparatus, accusing them of blatant interference by pressurising judges through abduction and torture of their relatives and secret surveillance inside their homes.

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Judges hearing a case on now-jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who was accused of hiding the existence of his daughter, found that their relatives and friends were being threatened. In another case, a judge found surveillance equipment in his bedroom.

A relative of another judge was beaten and tortured, while he himself came under a media campaign to malign him. The examples are many, but what is shocking is that none of this is new. In 2018, Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui was dismissed for making public this very same allegation that Pakistani intelligence, specifically Major Gen Faiz Hameed, the then DG-C, ISI, was interfering in the affairs of the court.

The high court judges refer to this travesty of justice (later reversed) and demand that “the Supreme Court…consider how best to protect the independence of the judiciary, put in place a mechanism to affix liability for those who undermine such independence, and clarify…the course of action they must take when they find themselves at the receiving end of interference and/or intimidation by members of the executive".

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Worse, the letter details complaints made to the Islamabad High Court earlier and the complete lack of action by the chief justice of that court.

And then came the poison

The worst was to follow. Justice Qazi Faez Isa consulted with (selected) Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and decided to form an ‘inquiry commission’—the standard format in most countries to delay and confuse a decision—even as the cabinet quickly endorsed it.

Justice Isa, it may be remembered, generally favours the ‘establishment’. In 2012, he headed just such a ‘Commission’ to look into the ‘ Memogate’ scandal, where the then Pakistani Ambassador Husain Haqqani was accused of sending a memo to an American official, exposing serious rifts between the army and the Zardari-led government. Isa decided that Haqqani had been disloyal to his country, even as the case thereafter dragged on for years. But this time, the legal fraternity and concerned citizens were having none of it. They rejected the toothless one-man commission appointed—even as the selected judge recused himself—and demanded that the Supreme Court take ‘suo moto’ notice, and extend the inquiry to “ fix responsibility for any breach by the executive officials (if proven) and hold those responsible to account to secure the independence of the judiciary and to restore public confidence in the institution of the judiciary”. That was supported by all the bar associations in the country and civil society leaders. But more drama was to follow. All eight of the Islamabad High Court judges received a letter with a ‘suspicious powder’ believed to be anthrax A. ‘Tehreek-i-Namoos Pakistan’ criticised the justice system and added, for good measure, a photo and the words “Bacillus Anthracis” in a letter. The Counter Terrorism Department promptly filed a case here and in Lahore, where another set of judges received similar letters. It’s all very mysterious.

Washington dives in

It is a testimony to the state of Pakistan that expert commentaries have little doubt about the veracity of the judges accusations. But neither is anyone expecting a revolution. The ‘comfortable’ relationship between the executive and the present chief justice indicates that no rapping of knuckles can be expected. Neither are the top politicians holding back from ensuring this is the case. President Zardari ‘ vowed’ action against ‘elements maligning the army’ as he met Gen Asim Munir. And partners from abroad have been as predictable.

As Pakistan reeled under this fresh scandal, President Biden sent a no doubt terse letter (this after ignoring Pakistan in his presidency so far) that dwelt on climate change and a ‘Green Alliance’, but pointedly did not congratulate him on his election. But the boost for the Prime Minister was evident. The reply was enthusiastic in its offer to help in promoting ‘global peace, security, development, and prosperity in the region’.

That was followed by an equally terse reply by the State Department that security cooperation would continue. The US has also revived a CISMOA (Communication Interoperability and Security Memorandum of Agreement) after a lapse of three years. This is possibly for the often stated role of counterterrorism operations, amid a flurry of Taliban accusations of US drone operations over its skies, signifying the ever continued role of Pakistan in countering terror. As Jaish ul Adl launches horrific attacks against Chabahar in Iran and Iranian drones are reportedly flying over Pakistan, a rise in regional tensions is likely.

In such a situation, democracy is the last thing on US minds. China will step in to play arbiter, and Pakistan’s generals will find themselves again at the centre of geopolitics. And that’s all that matters. The judges can sigh and weep. No one is going to take much notice unless Iran decides to do to Pakistan what Russia has done to Ukraine. Meanwhile, New Delhi need not take overt notice of the US’ role in Islamabad. Leave the mess to the Pentagon. It is not going to win them any rewards.

The writer is a Distinguished Fellow at the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, New Delhi. She tweets @kartha_tara. The views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views.