A welcome advisory, but how long will this last?

The Pakistan SC order that State agencies must act within their mandates is positive

Atwo-judge bench of the Pakistani Supreme Court has directed all State agencies, including the government, army and intelligence to operate within their mandates. The court was delivering its verdict on a 2017 sit-in staged by groups, including the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), against an amendment to the declaration that public office holders are required to make. The Pakistani government reversed its amendment, but was unable to end the protests without involving the all-powerful army. The supreme court has censured the role played by the army and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) during the protest.

This is remarkable because the army and the ISI are rarely castigated in this manner by either the government or the judiciary in Pakistan. The Supreme Court had also done its reputation no harm by upholding the acquittal of Asia Bibi, a Christian woman charged with blasphemy, despite widespread outrage by hardline elements in Pakistani society and clergy. If the Pakistani judiciary can make independent decisions like these in the future, it is certainly to be welcomed. However, the track record of the Supreme Court does not inspire confidence.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan has, on multiple occasions, helped the Pakistani army in its nefarious designs against the civilian government. The former prime minister Nawaz Sharif was ousted from office in 2017 on a trivial charge, dashing all hopes of a Pakistani PM completing his full tenure. The dismissal of Benazir Bhutto in 1996 was upheld by the court without a problem. Indian citizen Kulbhushan Jadhav has been given a death sentence by a military court against all known norms of jurisprudence. This latest show of spine by the Supreme Court is good, but it remains to be seen how long it will last.