President Arif Alvi deserves a lot of praise for what he has done what his predecessors perhaps hadn’t done during their respective tenures. Despite enjoying immunity under the constitution, President Dr Arif Alvi last week appeared before an anti-terrorism court (ATC) in the 2014 Pakistan Television (PTV) and Parliament House attack case. Arriving at the ATC along with counsel Babar Awan, the President filed an application.

Alvi, who is nominated in the case, came to the ATC along with his counsel to decline availing presidential immunity which he enjoys under Article 248 of the Constitution. We all know that immunity is an exemption from a legal requirement, prosecution, or penalty, granted by government authorities or statute. I must say again that the president deserves praise for setting a highly healthy and praiseworthy precedent by declining to enjoy the constitutional immunity.

Natasha Rafiq (Islamabad)

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022

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