Islamabad, Pakistan – The government has informed the Supreme Court that the amendments made to the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO) by former Prime Minister Imran Khan in August 2022 have not created a separate class for taking advantage of the law. During arguments in front of a three-judge Supreme Court bench hearing the challenge to the amendments, senior counsel Makhdoom Ali Khan argued on behalf of the federal government that the number of parliamentarians in the list provided by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) is not significantly larger or smaller compared to other accused, including bureaucrats and businessmen.
Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah raised the question of whether the court could say that a new class has emerged for taking benefit of the accountability law after the amendments, to which Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial observed that the Supreme Court had applied the doctrine of living tree in a recent opinion on a presidential reference seeking interpretation of Article 63A of the Constitution.
Makhdoom Ali Khan emphasized that the concept of the Constitution as a “living or organic document” has been used by the apex court in numerous judgements, and explained that the living tree idea is not unique, but rather a Canadian concept that allows the constitution to be adapted to changing times.
Chief Justice Bandial observed that the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court has been enhanced over the years, and wondered why the court should not subscribe to this new concept. The counsel argued that the constitutional view by the courts has always been consistent, and that the Supreme Court has always tried to reconcile a law and the Constitution before striking it down. The counsel emphasized that no one is arguing that legislators can enact a law that takes away any jurisdiction of the courts.
