ISLAMABAD: Supreme Court’s Senior Puisne Judge, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, has stressed that implementing the top court’s decisions is a constitutional obligation, declaring that it is inconceivable that such rulings would go unenforced.
“Let it be clear that it is not possible for Supreme Court decisions to be ignored,” Justice Shah stated at a conference in Islamabad marking the tenth anniversary of a landmark ruling on minority rights on Saturday.
Justice Shah warned that administrative institutions must understand they have no choice but to comply with Supreme Court rulings, stressing, “This is not my assertion, but what the Constitution demands. The Supreme Court derives its authority solely from the Constitution.”
During his speech, Justice Shah clarified his role, stating, “I am the Senior Puisne Judge, not the Acting Chief Justice. Justice Qazi Faez Isa is my friend, and he is the Chief Justice of Pakistan.”
He lamented the lack of implementation of the 2014 Supreme Court ruling on minority rights, expressing regret that this has become a recurring issue. “It is not possible for Supreme Court decisions to go unenforced, but unfortunately, this has become a pattern,” he said.
Justice Shah also pointed out that delaying or rejecting judicial decisions would disrupt the entire legal system and the balance of the Constitution. “There is no choice but to implement these decisions, or else the entire constitutional framework would need to be altered.”
He reiterated that implementing court decisions is not a favour or burden but a constitutional duty. “No one has the right to question the correctness of a decision once it has been made by the Supreme Court.”
On minority rights, Justice Shah reaffirmed his commitment to ensuring the enforcement of the 2014 ruling, adding, “The Constitution guarantees full religious freedom to minorities.”
He also called for interfaith dialogue in Pakistan, urging citizens to embrace tolerance for societal peace and economic progress. “Intolerance leads to unrest and division, while tolerance fosters development and job creation,” Justice Shah remarked, urging the government to act on these principles.
Addressing a conference regarding minority rights today, Justice Shah said: “It is not possible that a Supreme Court judgement is left unimplemented … let us make this clear that this can never happen that a Supreme Court judgement is not implemented. This cannot happen. It would be a constitutional violation if this was [even] thought about.
“Executive institutions have to recognise that they have no choice but to comply with the orders of the Supreme Court. I’m not saying this but the Constitution it [since this] is its structure and the Supreme Court draws this authority from the Constitution, not any other document.”
He said no one had the “choice to say ‘this is not right or [it is] wrong’”.
Justice Shah said the Constitution enshrined that there were judgements of a court and they should be implemented.
“This is the way. Either change the structure and make something else but the Constitution as it is and its structure, according to them the position is this.
“Any verdict cannot be disregarded or delayed otherwise you will uproot the entire legal system and you will upset the balance of the Constitution if you set out on this track that judgements should not be implemented. This is not possible.”
He also said that such an action would be against the separation of powers of state organs and also disbalance it. “Separation of powers is a core component of democracy and it should not be disturbed.”
Justice Shah said that to implement court orders was not a “courtesy” or a “burden” but was a “responsibility and constitutional obligation that you have to follow”.
He pointed out that there was a “delicate equilibrium” in the Constitution between state organs which should be respected.
“It is our obligation to maintain this balance and there should be no executive overreach of any kind. No one has the choice or prerogative to second guess a judgement if it is right or wrong. The prerogative is of the Supreme Court and once it makes an order, it has to be implemented. That is the system of this country and the Constitution of this country. If you want to make a new system then first do so and then we will talk about it.
“It is completely clear that [implementing court verdicts] is a constitutional duty and it has severe consequences if you don’t implement.”
On July 12, a 13-judge full bench of the apex court had declared that the opposition PTI was eligible to receive reserved seats for women and non-Muslims in the national and provincial assemblies, dealing a major setback to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s ruling coalition and potentially making the PTI single largest party in both houses of Parliament.
The Supreme Court had also declared the PTI a parliamentary party. The PML-N and PPP had strongly criticised the verdict and filed appeals against it in the apex court, along with the Election Commission of Pakistan.