Govt's 'lame excuse' on not executing SC orders

By: Khalid Aziz | Published: December 23, 2009

ISLAMABAD – Though the Supreme Court’s short order against the NRO contains various directions in black and white, yet the government is still waiting for the detailed judgment to proceed accordingly.
The short order clearly directs for reinstitution of Swiss cases against President Asif Ali Zardari and others as well as taking action against former Attorney General Malik Qayyum for exceeding his authority while communicating with the Swiss Attorney General for withdrawal of the mentioned cases.
However, the government has so far taken no steps to implement these and other orders of the Supreme Court in its verdict against the NRO, as the Secretary Law stated the government was waiting for the detailed judgment. “We would comply with the orders of the Supreme Court but once the detailed judgment comes out”, Justice (Retd) Riaz Kiani said while talking to TheNation on Tuesday. The Secretary did not wait to answer the next question as to why the government was not implementing the above-mentioned clear-cut orders, and dropped down the line.
State Minister for Law Afzal Sindhu refused to talk on phone while Dr Babar Awan could not be contacted despite several attempts.
A senior lawyer of the Supreme Court preferring not to be named said Ministry of Law could proceed against Malik Qayyum under charges of cheating and fraud while the Pakistan Bar Council could take action against him for professional misconduct under the Legal Practitioners and Bar Councils Act, 1973.