ADDRESS

ADDRESS <!--[if gte mso 10]> ADDRESS By Mr. Justice Abdul Kadir Shaikh, Judge, Supreme Court of Pakistan My Lord the Chief Justice, Brother Judges,' Deputy Attorney-General of Pakistan, Advocate-Generals of the Provinces, Presidents of the Bar Associations and the members of the distinguished gathering‑ I am thankful to my Lord, the Chief Justice for granting me this opportunity of associating myself in this Farewell Reference to our brother S.A. Nusrat, J. who, after an illustrious career on the Bench of the Sind High Court and this Court, lays down the robes of his high office today. The reason I requested my Lord the Chief Justice for my association in this event of today is my long association with Mr. Justice Nusrat eversince, we were at the Bar together for more than 40 years, from 1948 in the same Building, yet known as Court-Chambers, Karachi, from where we made our humble start of life as Advocates of the then Chief Court of Sind. We struggled together, in the start of our professional life, when we had briefs in almost every Court or Tribunal be that the Court of a Civil Judge or a Magistrate, the office of Rent Controller or Custodian Department, Chief Court of Sind, which had also the Original, Civil and Criminal Jurisdiction; and afterwards, the District and Sessions Courts when these were set up in 1956, and in the course of events, we, however, confined our practice to the High Court. Our association together was almost daily in Courts and in Chambers in the same Building afterwards on the Bench and the Bar, and then together on the Bench, eversince Mr. Justice S.A. Nusrat was elevated on the Sind High Court Bench in early 1977. These twelve years of our lives together on the Bench of the High Court and this Court have been very immemorial. My brother S.A. Nusrat has made a hallmark in whatever assignments that have been entrusted to him, be that on various Commissions, in Pakistan and abroad, as Federal Law Secretary or Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan. There hardly remains anything for me to add to whatever has been most eloquently expressed by the various speakers before me on the role of my brother as a Judge of this Court and in other capacities-- all I may say is that his role as the Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan will surely be recorded with great honour in the history of Pakistan. My brother S.A.Nusrat from tomorrow onwards, I know I will be feeling something missing, which has been a part of my life on the Bench, but you and I have the great consolation that while laying down the robes, you carry with yourself the most rewarding honour of having performed the duties of the high office with dignity and honour that any Judge of any country in the World would be proud of. While bidding you Farewell on my part, I wish you much more glorious life ahead of you. May the Almighty God be always with you. *** By Mr. Justice S.A. Nusrat, Retiring Judge, Supreme Court of Pakistan My Lord the Chief Justice, brother Judges, learned Attorney-General, Advocate-Generals of the Provinces and Presidents of the Bar Associations, ladies and gentlemen. 2. First of all, allow me to express my deepest gratitude for the honour done to me on my retirement from the Bench. Time has come for me to part with the fraternity of illustrious brothers of the Bench and distinguished members of the Bar whose association over the decades has been a great source of inspiration and stimulating creative thinking. 3. I am highly grateful for and touched by the kind observations made by my Lord the Chief Justice and the learned speakers about my humble contribution to the cause of justice while at the Bench and the Bar. I bow my head to Almighty Allah for having afforded me an opportunity to have discharged the heavy duty of dispensing justice to the best of the limited capacities of a mortal and to the satisfaction of my conscience. Justice is a divine attribute and in Islam it is placed on the highest pedestal as it is the most sacred duty of the State. Its majesty is reflected in the 'saying of the Holy Prophet: A country can survive with kufr, but not with injustice. One who sits on the seat of justice, therefore, is not only a Judge, but is constantly judged by the ultimate Judge of the Universe and one shudders to feel the great responsibility as a Judge that a mortal is called upon to shoulder. 4. I would, however, like to add that the judicial acumen and administrative experience that I imbibed on the Bench and by being at the Bar have been very rewarding. I should like to draw the attention of the distinguished audience to the Objectives Resolution enshrined in the 1973 Constitution, wherein the citizens of Pakistan have been called upon to observe the principles of democracy, freedom, equality, tolerance and social justice, as enunciated by Islam. It has been my endeavour to keep these principles as my guides in my role as an Advocate, a Judge and the Chief' Election Commissioner. 5. On this occasion, I wish to pay my special tribute to the Hon'ble Chief Justice Mr. Justice Muhammad Haleem for the inspiration and guidance provided by him to me while I was at the Bench of this Court. His judicial wisdom and proverbial sagacity of a Solon enabled me to inculcate and acquire many useful insights into the recent developments in constitutional jurisprudence. My colleagues on the Bench also extended their generosity enabling me to share many useful experiences and intricacies of law. I am grateful for the congeniality with which I was treated by all concerned in the spheres of my official assignments. I hope that the wisdom and prudence that spiral from the persons of the Hon'ble Chief Justice, and of the distinguished and learned Judges of the Supreme Court and members of the legal profession would brighten whatever calling that is now waiting for me in the rest of my life. 6. During last several years, my main concern had been to work as the Chief Election Commissioner under the framework provided for my activities by the law from time to time. I must say that it was a very challenging job, which was exposed to stresses, strains, pressures, and extraordinary situations. It was a sheer coincidence and accident of history that I was called upon to play my humble role at an important and decisive juncture of Pakistan's history in holding the National and Provincial Elections of 1988, which restored the democratic institutions after a long interregnum of authoritarian rule. But first in this respect, I would like to state the great role the judiciary has played in creating the situation and circumstances, which alone made this great historic achievement possible. Indeed it can be rightly said that in 1988 elections the judiciary's role was pivotal which by its monumental verdicts on election matters, made it possible to produce the results, through the elections, which are a great watershed in Pakistan's constitutional history and evolution of democratic processes. The importance of political parties in parliamentary democracy as envisaged in the Constitution was examined by this Court in the case of Benazir Bhutto v. Federation of Pakistan, which is indeed a highly valuable and learned thesis on the subject. The foundation of 1988 .Elections is rooted in this judgment and in the later case of Haji Saifullah Khan by which the election dates of 16th and 19th November, 1988 were given legal sanction and made irreversible, leaving no room for any adventurism by any quarters. This Court has since then rendered several valuable judgments of equal importance in the matters of allocation of symbols, use of identity cards and the jurisdiction of the High Court under Article 199 of the Constitution in election disputes. 7. It is quite obvious that without having the independence of the judiciary, the Election Commission cannot act without that quantum of impartiality that is necessary for holding elections that can command total trust and confidence of the nation. Only judiciary is capable of it and has that degree of prestige in the nation that is required for the Election Commission. 8. It was a matter of great interest for me to observe that the political parties encouraged the legitimate channelling of competition. It has enabled the nation to launch a great experiment "with democracy" and "in democracy". Thus, the competitive electoral context, with political parties organizing the alternatives that faced the voters, were the distinguishing elements of the contemporary democratic experience in Pakistan. While organizing elections at the national level, I witnessed the force of the argument that holding elections on party basis is essential for a strong democracy. The system of political parties constitutes' an important linkage between the social, economic and Constitutional setting on the one hand and political performance on the other. Of course political party system has autonomous influence of its own. I made an attempt to reconcile these perspectives with the concepts of justice and constitutionalism with which I was professionally associated. I am inclined to feel that linkages between political parties, elections and the administration of justice would be conducive to strong democratic performance. I am convinced that free participation of citizens in the national political process alone bestows legitimacy to any Government. 9. Whatever has a beginning must also have an end, as we all know very well. Now when time has come for me to bow out from this illustrious association of great names of the Bench and legal profession, I should add that the most pleasant culmination of a long day is a beautiful twilight, and what more rewarding end of the day there could be where ,one could say I finished the toil of the day to the best of my ability and to the full satisfaction of my conscience. What more could I hope than to lay down my robes with the appreciation of my hard work, done with all sincerity of purpose. 10. I say you goodbye with a heavy heart but I am filled with vigour and enthusiasm for my future role in the hope that you will continue to extend to me your blessings and good wishes in the days that lie ahead. ***