STUDY OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL INDEPENDENCE OF THE SUPERIOR JUDICIARY IN PAKISTAN

Abstract

The First Constituent Assembly of Pakistan passed a resolution in March 1949 called the Objectives Resolution. This Objectives Resolution established amongst other ideals “the independence of the Judiciary shall be fully secured”. The Objectives Resolution remained a preamble to all Constitutions of Pakistan. It has been made an enforceable part of the Constitution in 1985 under newly inserted Article 2-A. The constitutional independence refers to the way in which the judiciary is constitutionally structured. This paper examines the constitution of Pakistan whether it provides and secures independence of judiciary in Pakistan. The irony is that the first danger to the constitutionally guaranteed independence of the judiciary is from within the Constitution itself. There are certain provisions of the Constitution of 1973 which are in clash with the Objectives Resolution of 1949 and are detrimental to judicial independence