CPP today filed an application in SC for hearing of its petition on Art 248 on Feb 1

(ATTOCK)    Communist
Party of Pakistan (CPP) Chairman, Engineer Jameel Ahmad Malik has today filed
an application in Supreme Court (SC) and requested the SC to hear its
constitutional petition on Art 248 on the 1st of February with
the on going contempt proceedings against PM Gilani.

 

He said that on January 19, the Special Bench of
SC heard the contempt proceedings against PM Gilani and as the PM Gilani and
his counsel Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan sticks to immunity plea for President
Zardari and in their point of view the real issue is immunity and not contempt
and so the proceedings were adjourned for 1-2-2011 to see whether the President
Zardari has the immunity under Article 248 of the Constitution in NRO cases or
not.

 

It may be recalled here that the CPP filed the
petition on 13th April, 2010
which challenges and seeks interpretation of Article 248 from the Apex
  Court but till date this case has not been fixed
for hearing.

 

The questions of Immunity to President Zardari
and interpretation of Article 248 is now to be focused in the contempt
proceedings against the PM Gilani, as after the judgment of NRO, there is
indeed an ambiguity concerning immunity of President Zardari under Article 248
and SC is the right and proper forum for interpretation of Article 248, as to
what extend the President enjoyed immunity.

 

Whereas the President, Prime Minister and Law
Minister are openly saying that President Zardari under Article 248 has a free
license to do any thing he likes and no Court can summon him and opening of
Swiss cases as directed by SC in NRO cases is against the spirits and meanings
of Article 248.

 

The troika of President, Prime Minister and Law
Minister are assuming Pakistan
as a Monarchy State
which is not true. Neither President Zardari nor his co-accused has any
immunity under Article 248 for corruption cases against him either with
Accountability Courts here in Pakistan
or in Swiss Court in Switzerland,
the CPP Chairman maintained.

 

Even otherwise, the Article 248 does not give a
free license to President to do anything he likes. CPP in its petition cited
various SC judgments that how our SC has interpreted the Article 248 which
restricts the boundaries and conditions of Article 248 and the whole petition
is now available on the website www.cpp.net.pk
of the party.

 

CPP highly criticized all religious and
bourgeoisie political parties in its petition and said they have double
standards. They amended 102 Articles vide 18th Amendments but all of them
compromised on Article 248 with PPPP and President Zardari and so they did not
even touched a comma or full stop of Article 248.

 

CPP Chairman stressed that if President “kill an
human being” or “involved in a criminal cases of a heinous crimes” or “involved
in a criminal case of moral turpitude” or “involved in massive corruption
cases” or “if he openly commit an act of High Treason under Article 6” and
“abrogate or subvert the Constitution”, it is totally vague and evasive
interpretation that he is protected under Article 248.

 

If it is accepted that President has a free
license to do anything he likes than the whole Constitution of Pakistan becomes
nugatory and redundant and this is against the basic spirit of the Constitution
of Pakistan, 1973.

 

In the petition moved to SC, the Chairman of CPP
disclosed to the Apex Court
that in China Communist
 Republic, which is a secular and
non-religious state but neither its President nor Prime Minister has the
immunity not to appear in any Court of law.

 

In China, vide its Article 41, the Citizens of
the People’s Republic of China have the right to criticize and make complaint
to any state organ or functionary and Courts are bound to summon and redress
their complaints whereas vide our Article 248 says, “No criminal
proceedings whatsoever shall be instituted or continued against the President
or a Governor in any court during his term of office.”

 

Engineer Jameel stressed that according to Islam,
Holy Qur’an and Sunnah, not even Caliphs or any rulers or persons has the
immunity and protection as now allowed to certain extents in Article 248 of the
Constitution, which, otherwise is a Muslim country known as the Islamic
Republic of Pakistan.

 

He said that the immunity provided in Article 248
cannot extend to illegal or un-Constitutional acts. President is bound to obey
the Constitution and law under Article 5(2) of the Constitution which is basic
obligation of every citizen.