Criticising Pakistan’s powerful military, Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui of Islamabad High Court said armed forces cannot play any role in politics.
Pakistan's powerful military had brokered a deal between the government and religious protesters who were blocking the main entrance of the Capital for almost three week. The country’s Law Minister Zahid Hamid resigned following the deal.
Justice Siddiqui last week ordered the authorities to remove the protesters and end people’s miseries.
“Under which law the Army played the role of mediator? How can the military meddle in politics? I know after saying this there is no guarantee if I go missing or killed,” Justice Shaukat Siddiqui said in his remarks.
The government launched an operation on Saturday only to backfire. As the protests spread across the country, news channels and social media, including Twitter and Facebook were blocked.
To add to the misery, the military refused the government’s request for deployment of troops to end the protest asking both the government and protesters to resolve the issue peacefully.
On Sunday, Army Chief General Qamnar Bajwa met Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi. In the wee hours of Monday, an agreement was signed under which the protesters agreed to end the blockade after Law Minister Zahid Hamid resigned.
The controversy erupted last month when the Parliament approved Election Reforms Bill, which contained a clause that replaced an oath with an undertaking to declare that anyone participating in the elections did not belong to the minority Ahmadi community, who were declared non-Muslim by Pakistan in 1974.
Though the government reversed the clause, religious groups claimed that it was deliberate attempt to favour Ahmadis.
