Supreme Court Bar Association condemns NSC Bill

Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) on Thursday strongly condemned the passing of National Security Council (NSC) Bill by the National Assembly and termed the bill passing day as black day in the federal parliamentary democratic system of the country.
President SCBA, Justice Tariq Mahmood (Retd) while addressing a press conference here at the SCBA premises said that April 07 would be remembered as a black day in the democratic history of Pakistan.
He termed the passing of the National Security Council bill as an end to the parliamentary system of the country and the blackest day in the history of the country.
He demanded the apex court to take suo-moto notice against the passing of NSC bill as it was in violation of the verdicts of Supreme Court in Syed Zafar Ali Shah and Mehmood Khan Achakzai's case.
He said the apex court should show its integrity and independence by declaring the bill in violation of the constitution.
He said the matter would be taken up in the meeting of SCBA and joint action committee of lawyers, which is being held on April 17 in which future strategy would be evolved.
He said the passing of the NSC bill in the house of 375 elected members was saddened, adding that it was unfortunate that the elected members of the parliament voted for a bill aimed to give a permanent legitimate role to the armed forces in the country's governance and make the parliament subservient to them.
He said the passing of NSC bill was a terrible mistake and will have far-reaching effects on the politics and democratic institutions of the county.
It is unfortunate that a permanent legal role to the armed forces in the country's governance has been given by passing the NSC bill, adding that such precedent could not be found in any country where the parliamentary system existed.
He said the establishment of the council also means that all important decisions would be taken out of the cabinet and the parliament.
The establishment of the NSC goes against the very spirit of the democracy. He was of the view that in the presence of the council, the parliament would become a subservient institution.
Earlier, Vice-President SCBA Muhammad Ikram Chaudhry said that the role of military in the politics and constitution should come to an end. He regretted that the military either directly or indirectly has been involved in the constitutional affairs of the country since creation of the country, which was dangerous for the integrity of the land.
Meanwhile, Member Pakistan Bar Council, Kazim Khan also spoke on the occasion and termed the passing of NSC bill unconstitutional.