PUNJAB JUDICIAL OFFICERS

ACADEMY
(A Project of Al-Bahria CSS Institute)
DAWN Editorials: 25 October 2023, Wednesday
Military courts
WITH a five-judge bench of the Supreme Court unanimously ruling that all civilians accused of
involvement in `events arising from and out of` May 9 and 10 be tried by criminal courts instead
of under the Army Act, the state would be better off honouring the verdict instead of finding new
ways to work around it. The superior judiciary has taken a rather dim view of the security forces`
decision to court-martial civilians, whose crimes involved rioting and vandalisation of state
property including military infrastructure. This measure had seemed quite excessive even when
it was first announced, but has now been deemed unlawful as well. Not only that, the majority of
the bench has held that the provisions of the Army Act which allowed for it to be applied to
civilians, in certain cases, are ultra vires the Constitution, and, therefore, without any legal
effect. Thus, a solid legal line has been drawn between the civilian and military domains.

Attorney General Mansoor Usman Awan has said that the federal government will appeal the
decision under the recently validated Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act, 2023. Before
proceeding, the government should be asked: to what end? Separately, some experts believe that
the cases being tried under military courts will now end up in special courts instead of ordinary
courts because the accused may be charged with violating the Official Secrets Act. This will
ensure that proceedings remain opaque and the accused are tried under charges much more
serious than their alleged crimes appear to be. Again: why, and to what end? There is no question
that some overzealous individuals took political agitation against the arrest of their leader much
too far, crossing lines that should never have been crossed. But does this mean they ought to be
treated on a par with actual traitors, enemy combatants, and foreign spies? Do the convictions
being sought really fit their crimes? There are laws aplenty to deal with those involved in rioting
and vandalism; there is no need for an intervention by elements outside the civilian domain. If
any wrong has been committed against any state institution, the matter should be taken to the
country`s judiciary for redress. The massive imbalance of power between ordinary citizens and
the establishment would have worsened if the latter was allowed to sit in judgement over the
former. It is encouraging to see the Supreme Court take a firm stance on the matter. One hopes
that the cases of those who have been languishing behind bars for the last many months is
resolved by the civil courts soon. Meanwhile, bigger issues need our attention, the most
important one being what is to be done regarding those who have made a mockery of the
Constitution over the past few months.

Sr.# Word Part of Speech Meaning in Urdu Synonyms

01 Unanimously Adjective ‫ہقفتموطررپ‬ With one accord, unitedly

02 Rioting Verb ‫اسفدباپرکان‬ Demonstrating

03 Vandalization Noun ‫وتڑوھپڑ‬ Demolition, destruction
04 Deemed Verb ‫اھجمساجرہ‬ Thought, considered
05 Validated Adjective ‫دصتقیدشہ‬ Authorized, confirmed
06 Opaque Adjective ‫ددنھل‬،‫مہبم‬ Impervious, cloudy
07 Overzealous Adjective ‫دحےسزایدہرُپوجش‬ Overenthusiastic
08 Agitation Noun ‫ےبینیچ‬ Anxiety, worry, tension
09 Aplenty Adjective ‫تہبزایدہ‬ In abundance, galore
10 Languishing Verb ‫زمکوروہرہ‬ Suffering, deteriorating

Arranged by: Prof Naveed Sabri

21 Babar Block, New Garden Town, Near Barkat Market Lahore
0333-4438610 0300-4469650 0300-1905555 042-35911609
 PUNJAB JUDICIAL OFFICERS
ACADEMY
(A Project of Al-Bahria CSS Institute)

DAWN Editorials: 25 October 2023, Wednesday

Elections now
CALLS have grown louder for an election date to be announced, following the return of Nawaz
Sharif. Despite the clear constitutional provision that mandates elections to be held within 90
days, matters remain at a standstill following the Aug 9 Assembly dissolution. What has muddied
the waters is the previous government`s approval of the 2023 census, and the ECP`s subsequent
announcement of a delimitation schedule, which has effectively ruled out polls this year. Amid
this delay which prompted the PPP chairman to say `elections delayed are elections denied` a
debate over who gets to decide the poll date has erupted. Opinion was divided during a recent
Supreme Court hearing on timely polls, with some naming the president and others the ECP.
Both have dilly-dallied. The president wrote to the ECP suggesting a Nov 9 cut-off date and
asking it to consult the superior judiciary. On the other hand, the election watchdog has refused
to commit to a date, citing `technical` reasons, but assured parties that the polls will be held no
later than late January. Worse, where political parties should have put up a united front, they
themselves are divided on the issue, with the PPP and PTI using every opportunity to demand a
definitive date, the PML-N seen as not being vocal enough, and the JUI-F seeing January as
complicating the exercise due to the winter chill. The lack of a `level playing field`, however, has
been a consistent complaint.

All the while, the caretaker prime minister has asserted that the mandate rests with the ECP and
has expressed hope that after delimitations, polls will be held in January more than two months
after the lapse of the 90-day period. Most recently, he said the ECP will likely announce a date
`soon` and brushed aside concerns that a `level playing field` was not being provided. With the
president distancing himself, and the chief election commissioner insisting that the ECP alone
has the power to announce elections, what is the delay? In 2018, the ECP announced the election
schedule before the assemblies` tenure ended. This time, while it has busied itself with the
delimitation exercise, it would do well to remember that it has a constitutional duty to announce
an election date. Vague time frames won`t do. The time to announce a date is now.

Sr.# Word Part of Speech Meaning in Urdu Synonyms

01 Provision Noun ‫دعف‬،‫رشط‬ Clause, condition

02 Standstill Adjective ‫راکوہا‬ Stoppage, cessation

03 Dissolution Noun ‫یلحت‬ Closure, termination

04 Delimitation Noun ‫دحدنبی‬ Demarcation, definition
05 Erupted Verb ‫وھپٹڑپا‬،‫ڑھبکااھٹ‬ Exploded, vented
06 Watchdog Noun ‫رگنان‬ Supervisory body
07 Citing Verb ‫وحاہلدےتیوہےئ‬ Quoting, referring to
08 Lapse Noun ‫وہفق‬ Gap, interval, break

09 Insisting Verb ‫زوردےرہ‬ Asserting, maintaining

10 Vague Adjective ‫ددنہلھ‬ Unclear, equivocal

Arranged by: Prof Naveed Sabri

21 Babar Block, New Garden Town, Near Barkat Market Lahore
0333-4438610 0300-4469650 0300-1905555 042-35911609
 PUNJAB JUDICIAL OFFICERS
ACADEMY
(A Project of Al-Bahria CSS Institute)

DAWN Editorials: 25 October 2023, Wednesday

Appalling performance
THE spotlight is on skipper Babar Azam and his decision-making skills. These are now
desperate times for Pakistan at the World Cup. The ship is sinking, along with the hopes
of the cricket-crazy nation. Pakistan had never lost a One-Day International to
Afghanistan. But now they have, that too at cricket`s showpiece event, with their
opponents enjoying an eight-wicket victory in Chennai. There are doubts that matters
will get better. Babar pinned his hopes on cricket`s unpredictable nature for a
turnaround. But the problem is that the current team has become very predictable.
Pakistan have seen three consecutive defeats the match against Afghanistan will hurt the
most. At the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium, they were in cruise control mode, toying with
Pakistan`s much vaunted bowling attack at will and meeting a 283-run target with no
discomfort. Pakistan`s spinners again proved ineffective. In the last three games,
Pakistan have picked up just one wicket from spin. The pacers aren`t faring any better,
being whacked across the field by the Afghan batters and are showing little fight to
counter the onslaught.

But the biggest question revolves around Babar`s captaincy. It is argued that he isn`t
aggressive with his field placings to help his bowlers get the needed breakthroughs.
There has been some conservatism in his captaincy at a time when other teams have
become adventurous. Concerns have also been raised over the current team management
and it is being asked why it has been unable to prevent bad performances. Critics say that
in the match against Afghanistan, Pakistan settled for a total of around 280 on a wicket
where the par-score was over 300. How Pakistan emerge from this and quickly, with
South Africa up next on Friday remains to be seen but they are in familiar territory. Not
only must they win all their remaining matches, they also need other results to go their
way if they are to make it to the semis.

Sr.# Word Part of Speech Meaning in Urdu Synonyms

01 Desperate Adjective ‫امویسنک‬ Distressed, worried
02 Opponents Noun ‫اخمنیفل‬ Adversaries, rivals

03 Unpredictable Adjective ‫ریغوتمعق‬ Random, erratic

04 Turnaround Noun ُ Improvement, change
‫نٹلپ‬،‫مڑان‬
05 Consecutive Adjective ‫اگلاتر‬ Successive, back-to-back

06 Vaunted Adjective ‫سجیکتہبزایدہرعتفییکاجیتوہ‬ Overhyped, praised

07 Onslaught Noun ‫ہلمح‬ Attack, assault
08 Conservatism Noun ‫دقاتمدنسپی‬ Traditionalism

09 Adventurous Adjective ‫ہ‬

‫موج‬ Daring, audacious
10 Emerge Verb ‫ارھبان‬،‫نلکلنا‬ Arise, appear

Arranged by: Prof Naveed Sabri

21 Babar Block, New Garden Town, Near Barkat Market Lahore
0333-4438610 0300-4469650 0300-1905555 042-35911609