Islamabad: In a blunt warning, Pakistan`s Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry has said the Supreme Court is authorised to intervene if any state organ transgresses the parameters spelt out for it in the Constitution.
"The Constitution is supreme. Therefore, it is constitutionally binding on all state organs to work within the parameters laid down in the Constitution," Chaudhry said while addressing a ceremony to mark the new judicial year yesterday.
"Heavy responsibility rests with the judiciary to ensure all the state departments remain and work within their ambit while exercising their powers and discharging their obligations. Under the Constitution, the supreme judiciary is empowered to interfere whenever any state organ oversteps the prescribed limits," he said.
The Constitution was approved in Parliament with the consensus of all political parties and contains a scheme for distribution of powers among all departments and institutions, said Chaudhry, who was restored to his position in March, more than a year after he was deposed by former military ruler Pervez Musharraf during the 2007 emergency.
The responsibilities of all departments and institutions have been defined in the Constitution so that they do not interfere in the jurisdiction of each other, he said.
The oath taken by judges of the superior judiciary makes it binding on them to protect, defend and uphold Constitution and they are bound to keep a check on steps taken by other institutions of the state, he said.
ANI
